


O

by soranokumo



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Canon - Original Game, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-18
Updated: 2014-11-17
Packaged: 2018-02-26 02:58:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 65,320
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2635469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soranokumo/pseuds/soranokumo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post-Meteor Midgar finds Cloud Strife in a precarious position when given a perplexing proposition by Rufus Shinra. Before he can escape he has to figure out what chains actually hold him. Original game canon only. Warnings for explicit language, explicit sex, noncon, humiliation, bondage, and the fact that Zack's surname is Donovan, not Fair.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Difficult Propositions

**Author's Note:**

> So I’ve written a couple of stories with Rufus being a perfectly respectable gentleman post-Meteor. This is not one of those stories. If anything I think it’s like I took all the important bits of SOLDIERS and reduced it down to a much shorter post-game story. By accident. For those of you who remember SOLDIERS, that statement should hopefully be both terrifying and exciting.

**Difficult Propositions**

He couldn't really remember much about everything immediately following Meteor. He remembered the wreckage of the _Highwind_ , on the outskirts of the ruined Midgar. He remembered how one faction of Shinra troopers, panicked and not knowing what the hell they were doing anymore with the alarm sirens ringing throughout the city and the Mako spikes making monsters of corpses, found Avalanche and decided violence was the best way to see them in.

He remembered fighting them off to give the others time to escape, as many of them were injured. Even Vincent did not emerge unscathed, with the Mako spikes wreaking holy hell to his inner demons, his metal claw shed--and he remembered Tifa limping, and Yuffie cradling an arm, and even Barret with gouges from the broken glass of the cockpit, and gods, the airmen--

So he fought, and finally a Turk showed up and growled at the men to stand down, what were they, idiots--and he blacked out.

Which left him here, now, and he wasn't sure how long it had been or what time it was, exactly. There were no windows, save for the one at the door that could slide open, slide shut. A viewing window, nothing else. There were cameras, too. He knew the look of this kind of cell. It was meant for keeping SOLDIERs in check. But he wasn't a SOLDIER, and they knew that, too, so he was chained. He could probably break the chains, but the time it would take for him to break those would give them enough time to react, and he was being drugged, or at least he was pretty sure he was, so he wasn't sure he could even manage that right now. There were breaks in his memory—he'd wake up feeling as though something had happened, but he couldn't remember—and he was certain that was tied to drugs, too.

Food slid in through another gap at the bottom of the door, on a tray, each day during what he believed to be the morning. It wasn't so bad, all things considered. A bit of a biscuit, maybe some broth, water. It wasn't much but he'd lived on less before.

He wondered where the hell Reeve was. He wondered how the others were holding up. He spent a lot of his day curled up on his bunk, his eyes warily watching the door.

Time passed, and finally he heard the door unlock. He pushed himself up into a sitting position to watch as Reno entered, lean and hungry, twirling his nightstick between his fingers and watching him with that carefully casual expression that gave away so little. He was followed in by Rufus, who was somehow still wearing an immaculate white suit, and then Rude, who stood firmly in the doorway, a living wall.

"Cloud Strife," Rufus said, and his voice hadn't changed, his demeanor hadn't, even with the very slight limp in his own step. So he hadn't emerged unscathed, after all. He wore his hair a bit longer, than usual, too--Cloud wondered if in brighter lights he would see scarring on that previously perfect face. "So good of you to have been patient while I attempted to keep the city from falling completely apart."

"You know I hate letting people down," Cloud said, and his own voice was hoarse. Rufus just smiled grimly at him, came closer, with Reno beside him.

"Well, you've fulfilled all our expectations. So it's my pleasure to let you know that we've dropped all orders to hunt down your friends." Rufus's mouth quirked as he clasped his hands behind his back, looking down at him, long bangs falling over his face. "I've even extended an invitation, through Reeve of course, to cooperate as we all work to rebuild what's left of our world."

"That's nice," Cloud said. "So why do I get the feeling I'm being excluded?"

"Well, it's handy for them all to think you're dead, for one," Rufus said. "For two, I seem to recall one specific hand giving the Black Materia over to our mutual foe. Even if that same hand worked to bring him down..." His lips pressed thin. "...how are we to know that you aren't going to follow down the same path?"

"I defeated him," Cloud managed, his voice scraping. "I killed him. It's the second time. The others will tell you--I fought to atone--"

"Indeed, you did, and for that reason I haven't had you executed," Rufus said, smiling again, more good natured. "But it isn't all doom and gloom, Strife. I'm willing to work with you to reach a more agreeable solution."

He felt his eyebrows rise, incredulous, and Rufus chuckled. "What?"

"I can't reveal all the details to you. You just have to let me give you something."

At that his brows furrowed, and there was another "What?" on his lips when Reno moved, and there was a needle sticking him in the forearm--his left forearm, dammit, the one that ached—and his body suddenly blossomed with pain and heat, and his back arched against the mattress of the cot and he screamed.

He recovered, panting, lying on his side, hot, Mako-laced tears squeezing out of his eyes. He wasn't sure what happened during the last several minutes, only that his body ached, and Rufus and Reno and Rude were still there, watching him. Rufus leaned down, then, cupped his face with one of his hands, and stroked his thumb over Cloud's lips.

"Good boy," Rufus murmured, and Cloud's eyes widened with such surprise that he couldn't react when Rufus leaned in, kissed him. Rufus pulled back with a satisfied smirk, then turned and left. Reno leered at him, gave him a jaunty wave on his way back out, and Rude didn't react at all before closing the door.

There was the heavy sound of the lock clicking back into place, and Cloud curled up on himself, whimpering.

"What... the hell...?"

***

At some point, he went unconscious. He wouldn't call it sleep, because when he woke up again he didn't feel rested... only more exhausted. Pushing himself up into a sitting position, he wondered how long it had been, what time it was, what the hell Rufus had talked about... and more importantly, what the hell he had done to him.

Cloud looked down at his left forearm, and blinked when he realized it had been rebandaged. Someone had taken a look at it already, apparently. He wondered what else they'd done while he was out, and then he heard the click of the lock, the mechanics of the door shifting, the door coming open. He braced himself, expecting it to be Rufus, ready to drop another bombshell on him, but it was Reno who sauntered in. The door closed shut behind him, but the lock didn't click.

"So confident I won't leave, huh?" he asked, and Reno just grinned at him as he came closer. "Or won't try to kill you?"

"Anybody else, and I'd probably have to say, 'nah, I've got a gun with a bead on you right now if you try anything.' But you, Strife, you I can say, 'Yeah, I am' and it's the truth. You're too damn nice to be in your line of work, you know." Reno put a foot up on the cot, leaned down with an elbow on his knee, no problem at all looming over him, and Cloud just frowned up at him. "But that's all right. You ready to hear the deal?"

"Do I have a choice?" Cloud said, and Reno shrugged.

"You kinda do. I mean, if you really don't want to, we could leave you in here and throw out the damn key. I'm pretty sure you could live for a damn long time, 'cause of your enhancements, but I'm pretty sure after a month or so you'd be dead, or close enough to it. But what a waste that would be, huh?" He grinned, reached down and stroked a thumb along Cloud's cheek, and it was another moment where Cloud was startled by it, jerked his head away. Reno just kept grinning at him. "Heh... So listen up. It's to our advantage that you're dead, but Rufus wants ya alive, because that's to our advantage, too. It ain't been easy since Meteor fell. The Mako is doing all kinds of fucked up things, and the monsters are pretty bad, and we've got a nasty winter coming in that your friend Red says might last a lot longer than a regular winter."

"You want me to help you take care of the monsters, but without the others knowing I'm still alive?" Cloud said, and turned his head to the side with a soft snort. "Gonna be pretty hard to keep that a secret. Not too many who can wield swords like... like the Buster anymore."

"Yeah, 's true, but it helps that most of your team ain't even in the city anymore. They're all trying to make sure their own homes don't get squashed by things. So..." Reno waited until Cloud was looking at him again, then said, "We'll keep you hidden. Get you set up where you ain't gonna be bothered, and let you out to repay your debt to Midgar by taking care of beasties, right? In return... maybe eventually Rufus'll let ya go. Maybe not." Another smirk. "Maybe you'll wanna stay."

"And why wouldn't I just leave at the first opportunity?" Cloud said. "I'm not anyone's..."

"Not anyone's puppet?" Reno asked, pointedly, his eyes narrowing, and Cloud flinched back, before trying to stand up--and found that the chains holding his shackles had been shortened. Reno tsked, and rested his chin on his hand. "Seriously, Strife. Did you really think that was a secret to us?"

"Shut up!" Cloud snarled, pulling at the shackles. "Shut up and let--me--" He grunted when Reno's other hand slid into his hair, gripped it tightly, painfully, but he didn't let Reno see that it hurt. In fact, if anything, he was more surprised because it was... His hair was longer. How long had he been down there?

"Calm the fuck down, kid," Reno drawled. "Just chill, got it? It ain't like we're spreading that secret around. We aren't. The only ones that know are me, Tseng, Rude, and Rufus. Of course Elena don't know, or else the entire damn city would know by now, too, including your friends." He forced Cloud's head up, so their gazes met. "I ain't gonna tell you everything, either, Strife. But let me put it this way... if you try to leave before Rufus is done with ya, it ain't gonna end well."

"How?" Cloud growled. "Why are you so certain you can pin me down once these damned chains are off?"

"We got a clever doctor around," Reno said, relaxing his grip on Cloud's hair, but not letting him go. "And a few other things. You won't be able to leave, kid. They've made sure of that. Even if you get sent on a mission out of the city, you'll wanna come back." There was something strange in Reno's expression as he said that, but then he grinned again. "So you might as well enjoy yourself while you're here, right? Be Rufus's pet wolf for a little bit. I'm sure he'll make it worth your while."

Cloud carefully pulled his head away from Reno's grip, leaned back against the cot, shut his eyes. "Why...?"

"You want to know the truth? A truth, anyway." And Reno stood up. "Your help would help keep us all afloat. And you haven't exactly given us a reason not to fear that you're gonna flip out on us, you know. I've seen the footage of what went down during that Reunion or whatever-the-hell you called it. That's why all this. That's why they put in their security plan to make sure you wouldn't just ditch us and leave, and frankly we'd all sleep in our beds a little easier knowing we can keep an eye on you. Now, I ain't gonna repeat myself again. Are ya gonna agree, or not?"

It didn't feel like much of a choice. Not really. Either he agreed and was Rufus's "pet" for gods only knew how long, or he didn't and was left there to rot. He finally opened his eyes, looked up at Reno and nodded.

"Fine. Fine, I'll do it."

***

It was part of their security, Reno explained, that Cloud have no clue where he had been held. That was his excuse for subjecting Cloud to another syringe, and damn if it didn't just put him out again. When he woke up next, he was lying on a bed, a surprisingly comfortable one, on top of a duvet. He could tell just by the touch of it against his cheek that it was high quality. Anything that was of a low thread count felt scratchy to him, anymore. He was used to it--you couldn't live with the SOLDIER enhancements if you couldn't deal with the increased sensitivity--but still...

He pushed himself up, and there was a lack of chains or shackles anywhere. That was heartening. But then as he sat up and looked around he started to notice disturbing, familiar touches. The walls were painted a dark, smoky gray color, and the duvet on the bed was black. So were the pillows, and the bedframe was wrought iron, but with graceful curls and curves between posts. The more he looked around, the more he saw the same theme, and he felt panic rising up in his throat when he recognized things, like that book casually placed on the corner of the nightstand, beside the lamp. That book, that one about the history of Wutai, the exact same one he'd been reading before the mission to Nibelheim.

He got up off the bed, and inspected the doors. The nearest one led to a bathroom, and that looked blessedly utilitarian, though the shower stall also doubled as a tub, which was more than he was used to. Then he tried the next door, which opened into--well, others might call it a study, but Cloud knew better. It was an office. And it was his office, right down to the dark polished look of the desk.

"I thought you said you didn't want me to go crazy!" he said, looking about. If it was really so accurate, then they'd have bugged the place, and someone right now was watching him trying to keep from panicking in the rooms. "Why the hell have you done this?! Where did you even get all of this?"

But there was no answer, and Cloud looked, checked everything, saw that the only things missing from the room were the blades. Even the stands to display the swords were there, but the collection was gone. The one that was kept in the middle left drawer of the desk—missing. Even the damn letter opener was gone. Gasping for air, Cloud then went to the only other door, and tried to open it. The keycard-activated lock beside it still showed red and the door wouldn't open. He raised his fist to punch his way through when the door just as suddenly clicked—the light flickered green--and then slid open, revealing Rufus, with Tseng behind him.

"I'd heard that you were awake again, Strife," Rufus said, watching as Cloud lowered his fist and backed away from the door. "Is this not to your liking? I was under the impression that you valued his sense of aesthetics."

"It just..." Cloud kept backing away until he bumped against the desk, and as Rufus and Tseng entered the door slid shut again. "I don't get it."

"Well of course I'm trying to manipulate you emotionally," Rufus said, amused. "But it's also something of a gift. These items were going to be destroyed or recycled. In anticipation that you might consent to my proposition, I decided to keep them on hand, just in case." He shrugged. "Yours and Donovan's personal items from the barracks are gone for good, I'm afraid. The old regime didn't see them worth keeping. And of course, I admit this isn't entirely perfect--from what I understand, there was a den and dining room between his office and his living quarters--but it's the best I could do given our current... challenges."

"Ah..." Cloud looked around, realized he still shook, and wondered how much of it was coming off the drug, whatever it was. "So... these... are my quarters, now."

"Yes. I doubt you've looked yet, but your uniforms and some other civilian clothing are in the bedroom. I'm doing my best to provide for you. And let me state, in no uncertain terms, Strife, that when you're on the job, you must be wearing the uniform."

Cloud's brow wrinkled. "It's... part of your way of hiding me, isn't it."

Rufus smiled again, that cold one that didn't touch his eyes, but still seemed outwardly pleasant. A businessman's smile, through and through. "Indeed, Strife. But don't worry. I've arranged for there to be times within the SOLDIER quarters that directly adjoin here where the others will not be allowed use of the facilities, so you don't have to worry about going to the gym to practice in your uniform, if you dislike the thought."

"You... You don't have to do that," Cloud started, but Rufus shook his head.

"No, I do. I have it on good word that some among them might recognize you, and we need to keep people's awareness of that fact down to a minimum. That's part of the deal, Strife. To the rest of the world, you're dead."

"Right..." Cloud rubbed at his eyes, looking down. "So... what about food?"

"Most nights, you'll be dining with me," Rufus said, and continued as if he didn't see Cloud's startled look, "but on some occasions I'll have one of the Turks eat with you. Your identity will be kept safe. And besides which, I'm sure Reno's looking forward to the time with you. Tseng?"

"Sir." Tseng stepped forward with a file, covered in confidential tabs, and offered it to Cloud. Cloud took it, and flipped it open. "Your role is to be a special operative--not part of SOLDIER, but not part of the regular military. You will receive missions directly from us--the Turks, or the President--and no one else. I'm sure one of the department heads will try to coopt you for their own gains, but you are to ignore them unless we verify it."

"Understood," Cloud said, looking at the papers in the file. This... This was familiar, being briefed before a mission. It was only that this one would be far more extensive than the ones he ran as a trooper. "And... my codename?"

"Fenrir, of course," Rufus said, his lips quirking upwards again with amusement. "After all... what better name for the man who killed a god? You're going to become one of my wolves, Strife. The Turks make the perfect hounds, but I need something more powerful and more feral to assist me with the upcoming challenges. So that's what you will do, as you agreed upon."

"Right..." Cloud nodded, setting the file aside on the desk. "And... when do I begin?"

"Truthfully? I was wondering if you would like to take your first meal with me," Rufus said with a laugh, "but I understand if you wish to decline... this time, in any case."

"N-no, I'll... I'll come with you," Cloud said, and Rufus smiled.

"I'm sure you will, Strife."

***

Rufus obligingly gave Cloud time to actually bathe, for the first time since... since Meteor fell, really. Not that they had kept him so dirty in the cell--he was pretty sure during some of his less than conscious moments there had been some maintenance to keep him from getting so dirty, and the cell's toilet always remained clean. Still, he scrubbed at himself, scrubbed until his skin turned pink, and washed his hair, fingernails working at his scalp.

He finally felt clean, and finally got out of the shower. The pinkness of his skin where he rubbed it raw had gone away already--the remaining pink was from the heat of the shower. He toweled off, then wandered into the bedroom, pausing to poke his head into the office to inquire about the dress code.

"Well, we'll be headed to a different section of the building, so your uniform will be best this time," Rufus said amiably from one of the armchairs, and Cloud nodded before he got to the closet, pulled the doors open... and stopped. And stared.

He clenched his jaw, and then pulled out the pieces of the uniform. Then he checked the dresser for underwear, found what he wanted. He pulled on the underwear, then the leather pants, before reaching for the black turtleneck top, which fit well enough. Then the belt, which was a regular thin strap of leather rather than the more complex harness that the SOLDIERs would wear. Then the coat, then the boots, then the gloves.

When he stepped back out into the office, both Tseng and Rufus looked up, quiet for a moment before Rufus smiled that smile of his--that subtly dangerous one, even when nothing he said or did was outwardly threatening.

"I always thought that it would look good on you. Now there's only one more piece. Tseng."

"Sir."

Cloud wondered when Tseng had retrieved the helmet, because he hadn't had it with him when they first came in, but he had been showering for a time. In any case, the helmet that Tseng presented looked like any other SOLDIER-issue helm, other than the black color scheme, until Cloud noticed that there wasn't just the visor, but... a mask beneath that. His fingers slid over the white mask, at the familiar shape, the cracks down the cheeks where the separate pieces were joined. Finally he looked up, and just said, "What the hell are you telling them?"

"That you're a special operative, and your identity is best kept secret," Rufus said. "For all they know, we really did cook you up in the lab."

"But this?" Cloud said, pointing to the mask. "You know what this is?"

That smile was still on Rufus's face. "I do."

And he gave him nothing to push against, so Cloud didn't know what more to say, only looked back down at it. Rufus got up from the chair, and headed for the door with his slight limp, Tseng behind him. "You're not passing through this door until you have the helm on, wolf." And as if to make that perfectly clear, Tseng stopped right in the doorway and turned to face him, one eyebrow quirked up expectantly.

With a soft growl, Cloud lifted the helm, carefully fitted it over his head, and was surprised at just how easily the mask slipped over his face, and then the visor beyond that. Tseng nodded to him, turned and walked out, and Cloud followed. He stepped out into a hallway, and immediately glanced to one side, to see SOLDIERs walking through a set of doors. That must have been where their center was located. The hallway stretched out on the other side, and there were no windows, only cold, uninviting concrete and metal. He had no clue how to orient himself. He instead followed after Tseng and Rufus, who turned the corner and into a lobby area, furnished and complete with a few potted plants, and even an elevator. Leaving Tseng to manage the elevator, Rufus turned to look at Cloud.

"We'll be going to my own quarters for this, if you don't mind. Other times I might just invite you to the executive dining room, but I'm a selfish man and want you all to myself tonight."

***

The complex was built around the ruins and tower of the old Shinra Building; in many places the plate was down, and he could see scavenger crews working even then, lights roving among the metal beams, salvaging what they could from the wreckage to rebuild the city on the ground level. But there were also settlements, as well, lights flickering in the other sectors—and then they'd gone down the elevator to the ground level and the complex's protective wall blocked everything from view.

The building with Rufus's quarters was, to all appearances, just another bunker, though there were more windows. Bullet and shatter-proof, if Cloud had to guess, but he didn't intend on finding out. Guards at the doors saluted as Rufus approached, and Cloud could feel their eyes on him as he passed through the doors after Rufus and Tseng. The decoration was relatively spartan considering what he expected to find in Rufus's home, but there was still a plush carpet underfoot, and in the dining room the china on the table was fine. The table itself was small; he was certain he'd seen larger in the Shinra Villa in Costa del Sol.

"Ah, good to be home," Rufus said, shrugging out of his overcoat and handing it to Tseng. "You know what to do?" Tseng nodded before walking out, closing the door behind him. Then Rufus turned back to Cloud, and gestured to the spread on the table. "I thought since it's your first meal in a while, we'd have a light meal."

Cloud carefully pulled off the helmet, looking at the table, with several trays arrayed about. Tea sandwiches, deli cuts, vegetables and fruit with dip...

"...it still looks pretty extensive to me," Cloud said, and Rufus laughed as he walked to the sideboard.

"Might I interest you in anything to drink?"

"Water would be good," Cloud said absently, setting the helmet aside on a nearby table. He hesitated, but there were only two place settings at the table, and so he took the one closest. Rufus returned and placed a glass of cool water in front of Cloud, then sat across from him with his own glass of red wine. "Thank you?" Cloud said, and Rufus chuckled.

"Trying so hard to be polite, still."

"Well, you could have offered me out and then just kept feeding me biscuits and broth," Cloud pointed out, and Rufus grinned.

"There is that."

"What I don't understand is why... why the great deception. And also how the hell you plan on keeping it up, considering we just paraded in front of the complex. Why not let the rest of Avalanche know I'm alive?"

"That's easy enough," Rufus said, taking a sip from his glass before helping himself to some of the fruit. "You were fighting to keep them safe, weren't you? When they found out that you were dead, and that we wanted to extend a peaceful solution to them, they were somewhat at a loss. On the one hand, my 'incompetent' army had just done away with you. On the other hand, it became apparent that unless Avalanche and Shinra worked together, none of us would be around right now. Just as well, really--they were still licking their wounds. Thinking that we'd been able to put you under, even by accident from some band of troopers who didn't realize that they shouldn't, made it even easier to convince them that the casualties would be... extensive."

"If I was still with them, we could still have reached a peaceful accord," Cloud said, gingerly reaching for the tea sandwiches. The taste of the fluffy white bread in his mouth was surprisingly moist and welcome compared to the dry biscuits he'd been eating. The thin cuts of vegetables inside were crisp and fresh. He had to be very careful not to go for more, to appear desperate. He couldn't appear desperate.

"Could we?" Rufus said. "Besides which, they are working so well without you. I won't inform you as to Miss Lockheart's well-being--you should ask Rude about that." Cloud looked at him for that, but there was that smile again. "Ah, nothing more than mild surprise? I see my thoughts were right, then."

"Glad to know you're so successful at figuring me out," Cloud snapped, and Rufus laughed.

"No. I just found it hard to believe that you would have been with her. But she was absolutely heartbroken at the loss of her precious hero. Really, it's for the best, Strife..." Rufus took another sip of his wine. "Otherwise, you'd have broken her heart in person. Or worse yet, gone on letting her believe she could finally have you if she just tried hard enough, while you kept trying to run away."

Cloud's fist came down on the table, causing all the flatware and plates to rattle. "You don't know anything--"

"I know enough, don't I?" Rufus cut him off. "I know about you and Valentine, Strife. I know about your past as a trooper, and how Zackary Donovan gave up his life for you." Another sip, and his gaze was heavy-lidded, now, cold blue gaze dangerous. "And, obviously, I know about your time with him."

He slowly sank back down into the seat, and just stared straight back at him. "How...?"

"Who did you think the Turks really reported to? I've had them in my hands even before I was President," Rufus said. "So of course I knew."

"No--Reno had said about as much, but--the rest of it," Cloud said.

"After Meteor had fallen and Hojo was gone, it became much easier to get into his files. Of course, he never actually used your name. But that's when it clicked. As for Valentine... Let's just say one of our Turks happened to glimpse one of your little rendezvous with him away from the others."

Cloud attempted to nibble at the sandwich, finding his appetite gone again, and took great interest in the room's decor to keep from looking at Rufus. There was a rather large landscape painting hanging above the alcove for a fireplace, depicting a mountain range--most likely the Midgar Mountains, it didn't look like Corel, nor did it have the black peaks of the Nibel area--and there were other little trinkets throughout. All the furniture in the room was well-polished and deeply finished, so it all managed to look rich but not pretentious. There were less scroll-work and embellishments than he expected.

"As for the deception... well, for one it makes it easier for us to continue working with your former colleagues. 'Oh, we're so sorry, it winds up he was actually in a jail cell this whole time' makes for a rather poor excuse. For another, it keeps our actual enemies guessing, and everyone else besides."

"Actual enemies," Cloud said, looking back to see that Rufus had been watching him the entire time.

"Actual enemies," Rufus repeated. "The yakuza, the other gangs, the monsters, old pockets of Shinra power who think they can topple me now." He sniffed, and stood up to pour more wine into his glass. "Idiots. But I know no one better to handle some of our more difficult missions than you."

"SOLDIER is too busy?"

"And too few in number, any more. They were hunted down by one of those rogue factions I mentioned, caught out when they were on solo patrols. We stopped that once it was known that there weren't mere accidents or over-powered monsters taking them down. And yes, the ones that still live, I need to protect our food storage, our labs, the complex, the walls--anywhere. I hate reducing them down to guards, but they've held off threats when troops alone couldn't." Rufus put the bottle of wine down with a soft thump, turned to look at Cloud. "If Reno told you what I believe he did, then know he wasn't lying when he said we could use you."

Cloud just watched him, keeping his own expression quiet, then said, "Then why this?"

"This?" Rufus gestured around them. "Am I so cool and distant you believe I wouldn't want to enjoy someone's company during my meals?"

"Then why me?"

"Why, why, why..." Rufus finished off his glass of wine, placed it beside the bottle. "Hmm... no, I think I'm done answering your slew of questions for tonight." He walked toward Cloud in his seat, rested one hand on the back of the chair while reaching to stroke Cloud's cheek. "And you don't seem to have much of an appetite yet, either. So why don't we just move on to the next portion of our evening, hmm?"

Cloud could feel the heat rising to his skin, even though he couldn't believe it. "B-but... I... what..."

Rufus chuckled. "Either your drug-addled brain has forgotten that first kiss, or you're pretending to be naive as a form of self-defense. It won't work." He leaned in closer, before whispering in Cloud's ear. "I'm going to have you tonight, one way or the other."

"W-what makes you think I won't just kill you?" Cloud managed, trying to draw away but stopping when Rufus nipped at his neck, then bit him, hard. He gasped, felt his whole body jolt, and then heard Rufus's soft chuckle before he felt the hand resting over the front of his pants, and Cloud squeezed his eyes shut when he realized exactly what Rufus could feel. He only realized belatedly that one of his hands had risen up to grip Rufus by the shirt, to keep him there.

"Is that a good enough answer?" Rufus breathed, and Cloud felt his whole body shudder.

***

Getting from the dining room to the bedroom required maneuvering up some stairs in the hallway, and then through a closed door, all while Rufus was attempting to devour him whole. Cloud wasn't even certain he walked most of the way, or just rested his feet on the ground so Rufus didn't support him the whole time, feet stumbling. At one point he did fall back on the stairs with a grunt, but Rufus took the opportunity to run his hands down his whole body, laughing when he watched Cloud's resulting shudder. Then it was back to kissing, and then the stairs, and then through the door and into the bedroom and shoved back onto the bed.

Cloud felt his back on the bed and it was only then that he realized they weren't alone in the room--arching his head back, his wrists were grabbed and held down to the mattress, and Reno smirked at him from above.

"Hello, sweetheart."

"What the--ahh...!" Before he could finish the question, Rufus's hand had settled on his front again, and given a squeeze, just hard enough to make him moan.

"So glad we got to this part without any killing," Reno said cheerfully, while Rufus took his time undoing Cloud's belt. "It would've sucked, y'know?"

"G-glad to know I'm not disappointing anyone, here," Cloud said, and even managed to sound annoyed, which made Rufus chuckle while Reno just kept grinning down at him.

"Well, ya haven't yet, anyway," Reno said. "Hey boss, what about the belt?"

"I don't think it would hold him."

"If he didn't wanna be held, _I_ couldn't hold him."

"You don't know what I want," Cloud ground out, trying to bite back another sound as Rufus slid his hand up along his skin, drew his nails down his chest. The belt slid free from the loops along the coat with a soft sliding sound, a whisper of leather on leather, and Rufus passed the belt to Reno.

"Of course not," Rufus said, watching as Reno wound the belt around Cloud's wrists, before returning his attention to undoing Cloud's pants, and starting to slide them down. "We know nothing, Reno."

"You've got a lot to learn, Cloud."

He did start to struggle then, but if anything his movement only made it easier for Rufus to slide his pants down to his knees, at which point he planted a knee on them. Due to the high boots Cloud wore, the pants wouldn't come down any further, effectively pinning him down again. The coat was pulled open and the sweater pulled up beneath his arms, revealing most of his torso and his waist and his thighs, and Cloud closed his eyes tight as Rufus and Reno both grew silent.

"Lovely... just lovely..." It was a soft breath from Rufus, and he felt the man shift over him, using one hand to brace himself, the other to stroke up and down Cloud's side. "It's much easier to see, why he would have wanted you in the program, even though it was impossible... heh."

"Shit, though, I didn't realize the scar was right there," Reno said, and Cloud's body jolted when a fingertip--he didn't know whose--slid alongside it, without actually touching it. "How the hell did you survive that?"

Cloud started to open his eyes, before he realized they were burning, and that meant Mako, and that meant tears, and gods--the last thing he needed now--

"Ahh, too far," Rufus said, leaning over him, touching his palm to his face. "I believe that was a rhetorical question, if that makes it any better."

"Y-you... don't know anything..." Cloud managed, and was surprised when he felt Reno's fingers stroke through his hair.

"My fault, kid, I own that one," Reno said. "And you're right about that, at least. None of us actually saw... that."

"Please," Cloud cried, as Rufus leaned down, kissed at the tears. " _Please_..."

"Please what, Cloud?" Rufus asked him, whispering in his ear again, and Cloud shut his eyes.

"I..." That hand, Rufus's hand, slid around his cock, still hard despite himself, and he shook from the effort not to buck and throw them both off. "I want..."

"Do you want oblivion, for a bit? Don't you want to stop worrying about the rest of the whole damn world? You do that enough when you're outside of here. Well, the rest of world is fine. What matters right now is you." He leaned back. "So, do you want us to let you go?"

And it was unfair, to ask him that, with his body good and ready, even though his mind wanted to scream, and it was easier for him to deal with Rufus when he could just be angry at him, because that was simple, that was understandable, but here he was giving him an option. It was complex and confusing and he just wanted--

He cracked open his eyes, blinked away the blurriness caused by the tears. "I..."

***

Reno escorted him back to the main building of the Shinra complex, and everything about his appearance was perfectly respectable, perfectly in place. As far as the rest of the world knew, Rufus really did just have dinner with the Shinra's brand new employee. A good, formal, completely respectable affair. The potentially more scandalous affair would come up later, after Rufus had more properly established things—or at least that's what Cloud thought, if he knew the other man at all.

Cloud felt on edge, still, and didn't want anyone touching him--if the Mako glare actually made it through the visor and that was why all the troops on guard duty quickly averted their eyes, then all the better.

They got back to the room, and Reno let him in, before following him in.

"What...?" Cloud said, his voice faintly distorted by the mask, which shouldn't have surprised him but it did.

"You're on something of a probational period," Reno said. "Besides, if we need you to get outta here in a hurry to assist with something, and you don't got a card, gonna be somewhat problematic, ain't it?"

"Mm, it'd be a pain for you all to replace the door every single time," Cloud murmured in agreement, before lifting off the helm and shaking out his head. "...It's going to take time to get used to that."

"Yeah, but it's that or doing something to that pretty face of yours so you wouldn't be recognizable," Reno said, rubbing the side of his nose. "You can imagine about how long that option was on the table."

Cloud didn't answer, but sat down in one of the armchairs, began undoing the buckles of one of his boots. He was surprised when Reno suddenly got down and pulled the boot off for him.

"So... what's next?"

"Tomorrow you get the formal introduction to the job," Reno said, undoing the buckles of the other boot, before pulling it off too. "You'll get your new harness and armor and bits and bobs, then, too. We're withholding the sword, as yet, until you need it."

Cloud snorted. "Don't tell me you found Masamune, too."

The Turk blinked up at him, then barked out a laugh. "Ha! No, no. Ya ain't gotta worry about that."

He found Reno's humor about that a little strange, but decided he wasn't up for questioning it further. "...right. And have you all concocted some kind of origin story for this brand new super SOLDIER of yours? Sorry--special operative."

"Awww, I could hear the airquotes around that," Reno said, watching him as he stood up, went to place the boots--toe against the wall, perfectly lined up--beside the bedroom door, and then started removing the uniform, piece by piece. "And maybe we do, but a big part of this is to keep things as quiet as possible, so no one even starts trying to put pieces together. We don't want anyone scrutinizing us too closely until you've got the routine down pat."

"It won't be long," Cloud murmured, shrugging out of the coat and hanging it, carefully, on a hanger on the back of the door.

"Didn't think it would, but Rufus hasn't lived this long by taking stupid chances. Anything else you need? The place oughta be fully stocked."

"I'm fine," Cloud said, pulling off his top. There was even a laundry hamper beside his closet. "I... I'm fine."

"Keep telling yourself that, maybe someday I'll believe it."

And that was all that they said, Reno apparently content to let him have the rest of his evening in silence. It felt weird, knowing the Turk was just in the other room, but he didn't object when Cloud closed the door between rooms. Cloud removed the rest of his clothing, stripped down completely, and went into the bathroom to wash up and brush his teeth. As soon as he was done, he went back to the bed, pulled the sheets down... and stared at it.

It wasn't the same, but it was exactly the same.

He put a hand over his eyes, took a few steadying breaths. He crawled in, curled up beneath the sheet and the blanket and the duvet, pulling a pillow close. It worked for smothering the soft sobs.

***

Cloud woke with a start when he heard a knock at the door, and was still staring at it in confusion when the door opened and Reno poked his head in.

"Good morning, sweetheart. Time for breakfast."

"Shut up, Reno," Cloud growled, and thought he would wait for Reno to leave him alone before getting out of bed. But dammit, the Turk just nudged the door open the rest of the way, crossed his arms and leaned in the doorway, giving Cloud a look that dared him to go over and make him shut up. With a tired sigh, he pushed the blankets back, ignored the whistle from the Turk, and took care of things in the bathroom before starting to get dressed.

And there was breakfast waiting in the other room. Cloud could smell it--something hot and warm, and for the first time in some time his stomach growled from hunger.

"Done being pissed at me?" Reno asked, as Cloud stepped up to the door, wearing the full uniform, save for the gloves which he'd tucked into his belt. Cloud glared at him until Reno laughed and made way, and then sat down at the coffee table in the middle of the office and set to his own helping with relish.

It was simple, really, a waffle for each of them, scrambled eggs, some bacon--gods, bacon--and while Reno drank something out of a flask, Cloud had a thermos to drink from. He screwed open the lid, sniffed it.

"What, you think we're lacing your milk with something now?"

"Shut up, Reno," Cloud said, and sipped it cautiously. He didn't have Vincent's or Nanaki's sense of taste, smell, but he could usually tell if there was something added to milk. But he couldn't, and with a shrug he continued to sip from it as he ate.

After they were done, Cloud slid on the gloves and the helmet. He didn't doubt that someone would be in to take care of the plates and things, and decided that was for the best anyway.

"Welcome back to the Shinra as a brand new employee," Reno said, sliding his keycard into the door so it sprung open, and giving the escort of SOLDIERs on the other side a jaunty salute. "Hey boys! He might still be a little off, so don't pepper him with too many questions, right? 'Sides, your job is to get him familiar with the place." He looked back at Cloud, nodded. "Go on, then. They'll take you up to the executive offices when they're done with the rest."

Cloud only nodded in return, then stepped out among the SOLDIERs. The one in front removed his helmet, smiled at Cloud grimly as he held out his hand.

"James Clemson, SOLDIER First Class," he said. "I'm currently the one in charge of the rest. Any questions, and you direct them to me."

Cloud looked down at the hand offered to him, and took it, felt something strange in the touch of the SOLDIER's hand. Nothing terrible, but there was a certain kind of fear, even though it wasn't apparent in anything else about him. When they separated, Clemson directed them to the SOLDIER branch, and they started down the hallway. Cloud didn't look back over his shoulder, but he knew Reno was watching.

***

"It's cute, he's been trying to be gruff with me ever since he woke up this morning," Reno said, twirling slowly in the office chair. "I figure that'll last until he realizes he's being a jerk, and why he's being a jerk, and then he'll be back to his usual self."

Rude grunted, and Tseng looked up at him from over the reports he was shuffling through on his desk. "That taken with him, are you?"

"Well, he does have a fantastic ass," Reno said. "But I'm sure Rufus told you all about that already. So where the hell is Elena, anyway?"

"Late," Rude said, and checked his watch.

"Too late," Tseng concurred. "It isn't like her. Where was she last patrolling?"

Mention one of their team in potentially dire straits, and it was amazing how quickly Reno could get out of an office chair. "Hells, sir, wasn't it the Sector Six border?"

"Organize a search, Turks only at the moment," Tseng says, glancing down at his screen. "We should withhold dragging Fenrir into anything until he's finished, even if fighting monsters would be more preferable to dealing with executives."

***

"So this is our new weapon?" Scarlet said, leaning back in her chair, arms crossed beneath her bosom, and tapping a painted nail as her blue eyes went up and down his body. Cloud ignored it, easily, just stood at attention and kept staring forward. "Isn't he a little short to be a super SOLDIER?"

"A compact size makes maneuverability easier," Rufus countered smoothly. "Given the current state of Midgar, I believe that's a good trade-off."

Reeve, though… Reeve was frowning, stroking his beard. "Where did he come from, exactly?"

"A joint effort of the military and science departments," Rufus said. "Do you care to elucidate, Doctor Melantha?"

"Not particularly," the new head of the science department said. She was the complete opposite of Scarlet, though even Cloud had to admit Scarlet was dressing a bit more conservatively these days--but the long brown hair, the green eyes hidden behind glasses... She looked like a Straight A student from Midgar University who somehow wandered into the science department by mistake and got trapped there. "Most of the information is strictly confidential, without either department knowing the full scope. And until testing matters are complete, I really feel as though it's better to be kept that way."

"I disagree," Reeve said. "With all due respect, doctor, keeping secrets was precisely part of the problem seven years ago."

Cloud's eyes widened behind the mask and visor, but he didn't move, otherwise. Gods... Seven years since Nibelheim burnt, which would mean he'd been out of the world for two years?

"I understand your concern," Melantha said with a nod, "and normally I'd agree with you. I'd like to move us as far away from Professor Hojo's practices as possible. But in this case, it's also out of respect for our subject, who voluntarily undertook the procedures."

"But the SOLDIER induction processes were stalled," Scarlet said, eyes snapping to Rufus. "Weren't they?"

"They were," Rufus said with a nod, still calm and glacial. "And still are. Would you care to explain, Fenrir?"

"No."

"It's difficult for him, you see," Rufus said, clasping his hands in front of him. "Something of a traumatic experience. It'd be best to leave that be for now, hmm?" The other executives nodded, some more grudgingly than others. "Fenrir, you may take your seat and we'll continue on with business."

Cloud blinked at that, hadn't realized that Rufus meant to keep him close at hand for meetings of this level, but before he could move to the empty seat between Rufus and Melantha, an alert chime sounded out from Rufus's PHS unit. Even as he picked it up, his eyes were on Cloud, already having some idea what was going on.

"Understood. He'll be on his way immediately." He snapped the PHS shut, and nodded. "The border between Sector Six and Sector Seven. The Turks will escort you back once you're done."

"Sir."

***

He was out of the complex so quickly that the guards on duty didn't know what the hell to make of him--he simply vaulted over the complex wall. There was something so godsdamned freeing about being let loose, that he didn't even mind that he was just going along with Rufus's deal--maybe sometime he'd think about it, but if he actually worked with them, they'd eventually let their guard down, and then nothing could stop him.

And he couldn't help it--beneath the mask he smirked.

They hadn't given him coordinates, but he didn't need them. Somehow the mask and visor combination didn't mess up his sense of smell that badly, and his ears could make out the sound of gunshots and explosives already. As he drew closer to the fight he saw a long metal stick--an old pipe or support or something--and he paused long enough to haul it out from the pile of debris before running again. He kept running until he saw it, saw them, the Turks attempting to deal with a much larger foe that slunk out from behind a ruined building. When Cloud saw the chimera, poised to swat down one of the young Turks he didn't know, he screamed.

The chimera turned at the sound of his distorted voice, distracted long enough that the young Turk could limp out of the way, and then he was upon it.

***

"Holy fuckin' hell," Reno muttered, watching as Fenrir set about the chimera. The frantic swatting of the beast couldn't keep up with the sheer speed as Fenrir bludgeoned its multiple heads with something, long, thin, and metallic. He somehow managed to use it slice off the dragon's head before it broke on one of the ram's horns during a block. Then Fenrir got thrown through the air, landing in a chunk of concrete, throwing up a cloud of dust. There was an eerie moment of silence before the Turks heard a low laugh. Fenrir's dark-clad form darted out from the dust and straight back to the chimera.

"What the hell is that?" the young Turk, Shiv, said. "What the--"

"Shaddap, he's an ally," Reno said, and got back to the business of casting heal spells. "Geez, the materia's really fizzling out... Elena, close your mouth, it ain't seemly."

"But he--that--"

"He's doing his job," Reno said, "just like we should be." He straightened up after the last spell, turned to watch as Fenrir tore the ram's head off with his two hands, flinging it aside like it was nothing. "You guys all clear? Good. Rude, lead 'em on back, and get one of the cleanup crews out here--he'll be finished with it long before they get off their asses."

He pulled out a pack of cigarettes as the others took off. He tapped one out, lit it, all while the chimera's lone lion head roared in defiance, only to be silenced when Fenrir punched out its windpipe. The beast fell over, began struggling in its death throes, before Fenrir grabbed the remains of the metal pipe, took the sharp end, and stabbed it straight through the monster's chest. One final shudder and it stood still.

"Well, if any of the brass were doubtin' your effectiveness, that oughta clear it up," Reno said, taking a drag on his cigarette and walking closer. Fenrir's head whipped toward him, but Reno didn't tighten up, didn't appear aggressive in any way, and Fenrir also relaxed. "There you are, kid."

"Reno...?" The voice came out cautiously from the other side of the mask, and Reno nodded, breathed out a stream of smoke. "Did I... Is everyone all right?"

"Now they are. Wasn't expecting a damned meta class so far into the city. Tch. They shoulda contacted us for backup earlier, before they were limping and couldn't run." Reno dropped the cigarette, ground it into the dirt with his boot. "Eh... It's probably our fault. We been hard on Elena lately. She's not at ace level, but she oughta be capable of leading the pups. Of course she wouldn't've called if she thought we'd look down on her for it."

He looked over at Cloud, giving him a quick once-over. "You okay? Hard to believe that it didn't get you."

"Mm, a few scratches and bruises. Nothing serious."

Reno gave him another once-over, and then jerked his head to the side. "Well then, let's head back. Did you seriously run all the way here? From Sector Zero?"

***

The motorcycle pulled in to the complex, and Reno parked it on the main grounds. "Hey, we're here. You can let go now."

"Mm." But it still seemed to take Cloud a few moments longer to actually remove his arms from around Reno's waist, and then he dismounted. Looking around the complex, he couldn't help but feel that every guard and SOLDIER stationed nearby were watching him.

Reno headed for the main building. He left the bike behind for someone else to deal with.

"C'mon. Gotta report to Tseng now."

Cloud simply nodded and followed, actually taking the opportunity to get a better feel for the layout of the complex, and the main building itself. The Turks' offices were located on the same as the President's on the fifth floor, that much he grasped, but the SOLDIER quarters--and his own--were located on a different floor. As for the executive board room, Reeve's, and Palmer's departments, those were on the third floor. Scarlet's and Melantha's departments were on the first floor. He wasn't certain about the second and fourth floors, though he suspected the SOLDIER quarters were on the fourth.

But then the elevator pinged and the doors slid open, and Reno led him down the hallway to the Turks' offices. Two junior Turks were standing outside of Tseng's office, and Reno gave them a lazy handwave of a salute before walking right into Tseng's office.

"Hey boss! The others already debrief with ya?"

"Yes. What took you so long?" Tseng glanced up from whatever file he was reviewing.

"Had to backtrack to where I'd ditched my bike at the initial encounter site. Not all of us can run several miles in a few minutes like this guy, here." Reno motioned to Cloud, and then glanced backward to make sure the door was closed. "Eh. He also took out the damn thing without an actual weapon."

"So I heard." Tseng put the file down, sat back in his chair and clasped his hands together. "Do you have anything to add to the Turks' earlier statements, Fenrir?"

"No, sir."

"Then you are dismissed. Reno, take him back to his quarters and then come back here. I want to go over our training program with you so we can prevent something like this happening again."

"Heh, the juniors are in for it, in other words. Right then."

Cloud started to turn to follow Reno, but hesitated, turned and looked back at Tseng, who was already reaching for another report. "Sir. When will I have clearance, so the Turks aren't stuck with guard duties?"

"You'll get your security clearance when the President decides you will," Tseng said, glancing up at him again. "That's all I can tell you for now."

"Sir."

***

It was hard not to think of his quarters as just another cell--albeit a much nicer one than wherever they had kept him before. He cleaned up as soon as he got back and Reno left him alone, changed into simpler civilian clothes since he wasn't aware of any further duties and it was after the official business day anyway, and lay on the bed, staring up at the ceiling blankly. He was still there when he heard the knock at the door, and then Rufus entered, walking with a cane this time. Rufus just scanned his room before looking at Cloud on the bed.

"That bad a day, was it?" he asked.

"No, just..." Cloud sat up, watched as Rufus invited himself into the bedroom and carefully perched himself against the wall near the door. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were still... recovering."

"We're all going to be recovering, for a very long time," Rufus said, shrugging his shoulders lightly. "In any case, it's no concern for you at the moment. You did a very good job today... I appreciate the way you handled yourself in front of the other executives."

"Ah... thank you?"

Rufus gave him a different kind of smile, then, something tired as he walked over beside the bed. When he reached for Cloud, this time Cloud didn't quite pull away, just turned his head to the side as Rufus's hand descended into his hair. "Still so polite. But still so unwilling. Really, is it so hard for you to admit that you're attracted to me?" When Cloud said nothing, merely continued looking away, into the distance, Rufus stopped stroking Cloud's hair and gripped it, pulling his head back so he bared his throat. "I've come to take you away for dinner."

"...To eat dinner, or to be dinner?" Cloud breathed, his eyes narrowly open, but the slits of the Mako blue glow were positively vibrant.

"I guess that will depend on you, now won't it?"

***

Dinner was another light spread, with fish instead of deli cuts, and Cloud realized that he must have fully awakened because his stomach was ravenous. Breakfast hadn't filled him enough. Rufus simply watched him from the other side of the table, eating his own portions slowly, sipping his wine or his water. The rest of the building was silent, and Tseng stood in one of the doorways.

"This seemed more to your liking," Rufus observed. "Was it the red meats, or are you finally coming out of your stupor?"

"If I'd eaten too much the first few days I would've gotten sick," Cloud pointed out. "But it is good..."

A chuckle. "Surely you ate well with him, didn't you?"

He looked down at his plate. "I... we never..." A shake of his head, and he looked up at Rufus. "I was just a trooper. And he was the Commander. We... didn't usually have time to share meals, unless... missions... and then..."

"Ah, the busy life of a military man." Rufus propped his chin on one hand. "But surely he took you out at some point, didn't he? I have a hard time believing he didn't."

"W-wouldn't you already know?" Cloud felt the color rising to his cheeks again, and looked down, angry with himself for even giving away that much.

"Is it maybe because you don't remember such a time?"

"Shut up," Cloud growled, looking up at him, and Rufus laughed.

"I thought that time was so precious to you, you'd love the chance to actually talk to someone about it."

"Maybe it's too precious to share," Cloud said. "At least, too precious to share with you."

"This sudden defensive anger of yours is fascinating. It's not what you were saying in my bed the other night." Rufus raised his wine glass, took another sip. "But I think after time, you'll want to share things with me... not just your body... but everything."

"Only one person has had that," Cloud said, standing up, and reaching for the helmet. "I'm done now. Thank you for the meal."

"You haven't been dismissed yet, Fenrir," Tseng said from the door, and Cloud glared at him, before turning it to Rufus, who was still watching him smugly.

"I believe I'm off duty," Cloud said. "And that these dinner invitations were optional."

"You thought incorrectly." Tseng continued watching him impassively, unmoved by any of the display. "Fenrir is never off duty."

"Indeed, a pet doesn't just stop conveniently being a pet when it wants to, hmm?" Rufus finished off his glass, pushed his chair back from the table. "I believe it's time we put some of this into practice. You need to learn your place, wolf."

"I thought you wanted something more feral," Cloud growled, and Rufus simply smiled that damn smile of his, and beckoned.

"You have a lot to learn about what I want, Cloud," he said. "Now. Come here."

"No." He felt another pair of eyes at his back, knew another Turk had stepped into the other doorway. Which one it was, he couldn't quite tell, didn't want to take his eyes off of Rufus. "I've done nothing but abide by your rules. You can't... you can't do this."

"I can, wolf. Because this is part of the rules. And you're perilously close to breaking more of them."

Another low growl, which only made Rufus's smile widen. "What do you think you could possibly do to me--" But he cut himself off, realized that it was just what Rufus wanted. Gritting his teeth, he bowed his head. "May I have permission to retire for the evening?"

"There's your manners. But no. Now, before I have to repeat myself again, come here."

Cloud shut his eyes for a moment, felt his hands trembling, and dropped the helm with its damn mask so that he wouldn't risk crumpling it, and just giving them another reason to make his circumstances more miserable. Swallowing, he looked over at Rufus, and came to stand in front of the chair, staring pointedly ahead as he felt Rufus's gaze rake down his body.

"But you do cut a beautiful figure, don't you? Kneel."

"One knee or two?" Cloud ground out, and heard the sound of an incoming strike before he felt it--was in the middle of twisting around when Reno's nightstick collided with the back of his knees. He went down, caught himself with his hands, and started to turn and lash out at the grinning Turk before he realized that that, too, would just lead to something worse. He shifted onto one knee, eyes shut tight, even when he felt the familiar touch of Rufus's hand in his hair.

"That's better. Tseng, would you fetch the dessert? Reno, stay here."

"Sir," the two Turks echoed, and Cloud could hear the nightstick slipping through Reno's fingers, the slight whir of air as he twirled it idly. He ignored Tseng's return, ignored the clink of plates on the table, and remained on his knee--while dammit, Rufus just ate his godsdamned dessert, whatever the hell it was. Occasionally Rufus's hand would descend to stroke through his hair, but he was left alone until he felt the blunt tip of something at his lips. He startled back, heard Reno snicker as Rufus grinned down at him, a strawberry in his fingers.

"Why, my wolf, whatever did you think it was? And here I was just going to give you your hard-earned reward."

"You--really don't have to--" Cloud started, but Rufus lifted the strawberry to the table, dipped it into some thick cream, and held it down for him. He didn't have to say a thing, Cloud knew what he wanted, but Cloud started to reach up with his hand to take it and Reno's nightstick whirled down, giving him a sharp rap. Another steadying breath, and Cloud leaned forward then, opening his mouth and closing it around the tip of the strawberry.

"Be careful not to get cream all over your face," Rufus said, his voice quiet, now. "You should take care of it, shouldn't you?"

"What's a good soldier say?" Reno prompted from behind, and Cloud shut his eyes.

"Yes, sir."

"Good boy," Rufus said, and Cloud didn't look, didn't want to look, even as he leaned forward and swirled his tongue around the sweet, slightly tart berry, swiping the cream off before taking the whole fruit into his mouth, his lips brushing against Rufus's fingertips. He sucked, first, before biting it clear through, and sat back, chewing, before swallowing. "That's better. How was it? Too sweet for you?"

"N-no, sir."

"Good. Let's try it again, with less corrections this time."

"Yes, sir."

***

Cloud was surprised when it was Reno who stayed behind and Tseng who escorted him back to the main complex, but he didn't question it. He was still shocked that he hadn't been dragged up to Rufus's bedroom again, because if the feel of the man's body against his during their evening kiss goodnight had given away anything, it was that his slow destruction of cream-covered fruit had had its intended effect. And if Rufus wanted him so badly, Cloud had a hard time believing he'd just let him go.

"You're overthinking it," Tseng told him, suddenly, while they were on the elevator. Cloud looked at him, through the mask and visor of the helm, unnerved that Tseng was still watching him this whole time. "You should have figured it out by now. Every move he makes is to win. If he gave you everything you expected, it would be too easy for you to second-guess him. Besides, Fenrir," he said, as the elevator slowed, approaching the fourth floor, "don't be so enamored of yourself that you think you're the only one who can satisfy him."

The door came open, and there was a group of SOLDIERs on the other side, and Tseng was staring at him expectantly, so he responded the only way he thought he could: "Yes, sir."

Tseng nodded curtly, first in response to his answer, then to the SOLDIERs, before leaving the elevator. Cloud followed after, grateful that the mask prevented at least the SOLDIERs from seeing how heated his skin was. Tseng swiped his card and opened the door, gesturing inside.

"Your evening guard will be with you shortly," Tseng said. "Try not to snap at anyone too viciously, Fenrir--you're only here because of yourself, not them."

Cloud glared at him, knew that Tseng could feel it, because he actually blinked for a moment, but then Cloud nodded and walked into the room. The door slid shut, and clicked, and he tore off the helmet, gasping for air before hurling it to one side. He didn't even bother getting to the relative safety of the bedroom before curling up on the floor, hands gripping his hair and his eyes shut tight.

***

The next few days passed in something of a strange haze. He went on a few more orientation rounds, escorted by Clemson, to personally visit each of the department heads in their own domains. He could feel the curiosity off of each one, except of course, for Dr. Miriya Melantha, who was the last one they visited. There were a surprising number of plants in her personal office, and Cloud couldn't decide what to make of her. Her smile when she held out her hand to shake his was genuine, and a little shy--she looked so harmless, he couldn't believe she actually was.

"It's so good of you to come here. I would have understood it if you avoided us completely. I am given to understand you aren't too fond of... of science."

"Labs," Cloud clarified. "I... dislike... being poked at."

"I'll do my best to keep it at a minimum," Melantha promised with a nod. "But..." She glanced at Clemson, who immediately turned and left the room. When the door closed, she nodded again. "But I hope that one of your caretakers has informed you that you will require regular visits here?"

Oh gods. Cloud kept watching her, carefully. "No. I had not been informed."

She took a deep breath, rubbing at her temple as she released it. "Gods. Leaving it all to me to explain. Thank you, President." She shook her head. "The SOLDIERs are to the point where they come in for regular check-ups. We've been monitoring them carefully due to the abnormal amount of Mako spikes in the area since Meteor fell. I have been led to believe you're aware of what could happen if a SOLDIER is exposed to too much Mako in an unregulated fashion." He nodded, and she took another steadying breath. "Good. That's one less unpleasant explanation. As it is, when they come in, I administer a type of vaccine that prevents certain elements of Jenova's cellular structure remaining in the monsters roaming presently to take a hold in them."

"Jenova is dead," Cloud said, and Melantha nodded.

"For all intents and purposes, yes, I believe it that Avalanche extinguished her will. There's no reason so far to believe otherwise. The monsters do not appear to have the, ah, purpose that they had two years ago. But her cells still appear to have mutative capabilities, and that's what we need to keep in check."

"So I am... to be administered this vaccine as well."

"Yours is a bit special," Melantha said. "You... aren't like the other SOLDIERs. You realize that, correct? Unlike the others, who simply carry Jenova cells, you carry the legacy of the last SOLDIER Commander in your own body. From my tests, it appears that those cells, if encountering the more regular strain of Jenova cells, will, in a sense, take them over. They infect and invade and restructure them."

Cloud blinked. "I'm naturally protected?"

"In one sense. Have you looked at your left hand recently?"

"No." And he hadn't, truthfully. Even with the gloves and the coat off, he'd kept his arm bandaged up, and even when bathing, showering, he didn't look at it at all while he cleaned. He didn't look at it until he was making the last loop of the bandage, and tucking it in.

"We have reason to believe that the Planet might be attempting to warp you for its own sake," Melantha said. "The amount of Mako in your body is impressive... Frankly, you should have transformed into a monster already. Your current levels even surpass the amount in the late Commander's profile, from before his death seven years ago. Unfortunately, it's too complex to unravel at this point, but I need to keep an eye on you to make sure that the changes aren't occurring. And then, too, the medicine I've developed for you is actually designed to bolster the effects of the S-strain cells."

"Bolster them?"

"For all appearances, they're actually protecting you, Fenrir."

Cloud stared at her in silence for a moment, trying to take that in. Melantha seemed to sense his confusion, even with the mask in place, and nodded.

"I know that seems... strange... given circumstances, but currently it's the only hypothesis that holds true. We'd almost considered blood transfusions to the SOLDIERs, to protect them, but... well, you can understand why we don't want to be spreading the late Commander's remains around, don't you?" He nodded, numbly. "All right. You're receiving your missions directly from the President and the Turks for now, aren't you? So I shall arrange your first appointment with them. It won't be for a while yet, as you--you've had your last shot of medicine recently enough. But I will also try to make sure that they give you forewarning, so it doesn't come as a... as a surprise."

"I... understand." He hesitated, then said, "Doctor, before Meteor... where did you work?"

"I was actually in the group studying the effects of Mako--or the lack thereof--on the environment," she said. "I can gratefully say I wasn't anywhere near Hojo's group. He was still the head of the department, though, so no one could get away from him completely. Just know that I... I'm trying to do my best."

"Thank you, doctor." Cloud turned and went to the door, knocking on it. Clemson was waiting on the other side.

"Let me show you where we SOLDIERs go for our check-ups, or medical emergencies," he said, gesturing. "We don't report to the infirmary anymore. All the doctors qualified to treat us are here now."

"Understood."

***

There were moments of clarity, though. He did receive missions, usually through Tseng, as Rufus seemed to be keeping distant from him for now--they hadn't had dinner together since the strawberries. Instead, he had meals delivered to his quarters, and took them by himself. The missions were relatively short--find a monster that had gotten into the city, take it out. There was one evening when they were short on SOLDIERs--why, he never found out, and his superiors simply neglected to tell him--and he stood guard at the wall near the very important southern gate, patrolling it, taking out anything that came close.

That was the first time he noticed it. He was irritable, and he took it out on the monsters unlucky enough to get too close. The sword they had given him to use at the moment was the standard SOLDIER issue, and sometimes he used it, sometimes he didn't. There was something satisfying about tearing things apart with his hands, and one point when he came back he realized he was being stared at because the mouth of the mask was bloody. He didn't remember trying to bite anything, because--the mask would have gotten in the way. But...

Aside from that, too, there was a sense of urgency. That he had wandered too far from something important, and that he had to get back to it, but just what the hell that was--what it could be--he didn't know. He'd growl something at Rufus about a Reunion of his own--but at the same time, this didn't give him quite the same feeling that Jenova had...

He came back one night, still dripping wet from the cold rain, and he was handed off by Shiv to Reno, waiting for him in his apartment, but he'd barely gotten inside before Reno smirked.

"Go get cleaned up. Someone's requested your presence for the evening."

***

The walk back through the rain was especially cold after his shower, but Reno cursed cheerfully enough as they headed across the grounds through it. Tseng opened the door for them when they approached, and handed them both a towel. Cloud had to admit he wasn't surprised--Rufus didn't strike him as the sort who would appreciate water dripping on his plush carpets.

Once toweled off, he removed the helmet, held it in the crook of his arm, and Tseng gestured toward the dining room. Cloud felt his gut tighten as he walked in, his most recent memory being that humiliation with the berries, but Rufus wasn't there yet. Cloud looked over his shoulder as Tseng took his customary place in the doorway, and Cloud put the helm aside on one of the fancy endtables.

"I..."

"Relax, Cloud," Rufus said, walking into the room. "I was finishing up some work." He chuckled as he sat down at his customary seat. "I know you might find it hard to believe, but I do more throughout my day than just plot out ways to get you to come for dinner."

Cloud felt the flush across his cheeks, and went to his seat, blinking when he looked at the large bowl of stew in front of him... and certainly, it looked like... but he couldn't believe it, until he actually processed all the smells in the room--and his face blanched and he looked up at Rufus, who was taking his first sip of the stew, calmly as he pleased.

"What is it? I thought you might like to taste something more familiar," he said.

"How...?"

"Dragon isn't that hard to come by, Cloud. Please."

"But the stew. How--"

"Enjoy it while it's warm, hmm?"

And he knew the warning when he heard it, even if nothing about Rufus's expression, his tone, changed at all. Cloud simply nodded and started eating, and shut his eyes when he tasted it--because gods, it wasn't quite right, but it was very similar to the dragon meat stew that his mom--and several mothers in Nibelheim--used to make, because one dead dragon could feed the whole town for a long time, and enough stew could be made to last through the harshest month of the year in the mountains.

And so he tried to shut out the rest of the room--Rufus, who he knew was watching him--Tseng, who was keeping an eye on everything, and he didn't doubt that Reno was lurking somewhere out of sight--and the sense of richness around him, and just ate the stew, spoonful by spoonful. It did taste good, and it did warm his stomach, his body, rather nicely. He couldn't quite finish the whole bowl--it was one of those fancy kinds, shallow, but about the size of a full plate—and he sat back in his seat.

"Thank you for the meal," he said, and Rufus waved a hand.

"Least I can do. Can't feed you off sandwiches the entire time. Besides, the meat was available, so I decided to take the opportunity while we had it. How was it?"

"It's... very good."

"Ah, not perfect, then."

Cloud swallowed. "There should be a little more gysahl in with the vegetables."

"Truly? I'll make sure the chef hears about that. He was intrigued when I told him I wanted him to learn to replicate Nibel meals. You'll have to forgive him, though, if he tweaks them somewhat."

Cloud didn't really know what to say, only nodded, and took a sip from his glass of water.

"What if I told you I had a bottle of Ambrosia? Could I convince you to have a glass with me then?"

Cloud looked at him sharply. "Why the hell should I drink with you? You have enough ad—" And he stopped, realizing he nearly admitted that he was a lightweight by just stating that Rufus had enough advantages, but Rufus was watching him in that way that meant he had said enough. Cloud narrowed his gaze, as if daring him to continue, and Rufus laughed.

"Do you dislike the taste that much? I thought you enjoyed it."

"As if I'm going to tell you."

"Well, shall we find out?" And Rufus stood, walked with a slight limp to the sideboard, and prepared two glasses. When he walked back to the table, he didn't sit at his place, but stood beside Cloud's chair, offering him one of the glasses. "This is an order, wolf. As if I needed to tell you."

He clenched his jaw as Rufus threw his words back at him, reached up and took the glass in his gloved hand. Rufus already took a sip, and was watching as Cloud sniffed the glass, then raised it to his lips. The Ambrosia was a bright, clear, honey-color, without being quite so heavy as mead, but it still packed the same punch and the strength of the alcohol chilled his throat rather than burned it. He started to put the glass down on the table after the sip, but Rufus tsked and muttered something about wasting it, and Cloud knew it was hardly polite but he tossed the rest of it back, just to get it done and over with as quickly as possible. The strength of it made his hand twitch--the wineglass beneath his fingers cracked, and he put it down on the table immediately and waited for his eyes to stop burning.

"Had enough?" Rufus asked, reached down and stroked the back of his nail across Cloud's cheek. Cloud looked up at him, standing beside the chair, and said, "Yes, sir," but of course it didn't stop him. Rufus sipped from his own glass, put it down, then gripped Cloud by the nape and held him in place while he kissed him. Cloud shuddered terribly as Rufus forced his mouth open, passed the wine on to him, and Cloud jerked away from it as soon as he could, raising a hand to his mouth to wipe away the dribble, but Rufus held his glass to him. "I don't think it's enough. Finish it."

"Sir... please, don't," Cloud said, but Rufus raised an eyebrow, another warning, and Cloud took his glass, but Rufus didn't quite let it go.

"No knocking it back this time, wolf. It isn't a shot from Miss Lockheart's bar. It's a gift from your hometown, and you should enjoy it properly."

"Yes, sir."

"Good boy." And the next stroke along his cheek probably had more nail to it than strictly necessary, but Cloud ignored it, looked at the glass, at Rufus's fingers sliding over his. He lifted the glass, sipped it, and when Rufus's hand at his nape tightened he stopped. They continued with the process until Cloud drained the rest of the glass, and by that point he could feel it buzzing through his system, hot and pleasant.

"That's better. And you did like it, didn't you?"

"...yessir."

"I thought you did. Because you used to drink it with him, didn't you?"

"Yessir."

"And you liked the way it made you feel, afterward, didn't you?"

"Yes..." The entire time, Rufus's fingers were stroking the nape of his neck, sliding beneath his top to rub at his muscles, and Cloud felt himself leaning into the touches like a cat. Rufus leaned in, then, whispered into his ear.

"And you like the way I make you feel, now, don't you? Is it the same?"

"Mm..." Cloud forced his eyes open, hadn't realized he'd let them close entirely, and shuddered at the warmth of Rufus's breath against his skin, the brush of lips against his cheek. The arms of the chair creaked as his fingers curled around them, but he didn't answer, and Rufus's fingers tightened in his hair, making him gasp.

"You will answer me, Cloud," Rufus growled, and Cloud shuddered again, reached up with his hands to grab at Rufus's silken shirt, pull him down, pull him close.

"Not... the same," Cloud murmured. "Not the same, Rufus..."

"Ah, finally we're getting the truth out of you, hmm?" Rufus said, but he sounded more amused than angered, and his hands came down around Cloud's hips and squeezed them, pulled him up out of the chair. "Good. But you do like it, don't you?"

"Yes... sir..."

"Good boy. Reno."

Rufus straightened, looked at the red-headed Turk who had entered at some point during the wine tasting, and released Cloud with a gentle shove. Reno wrapped an arm around Cloud's chest before reaching down and hooking his other arm under his knees, lifting him up.

"All that muscle, and you're still so light? Huh. Well, come on, sweetheart."

"R-Reno?" He cracked open his eyes, saw Reno's face over him, looked confused. "But Rufus..."

"Right here."

"Oh?" He peered up over Reno's shoulder, to see Rufus behind them, and it was only then that he realized they were headed toward the stairs, and then the slight rocking motion as Reno hefted him up the stairs. When they reached the bedroom, Reno nudged the door open with his foot, and set Cloud down on the edge of the bed. Cloud looked down, could see that the sheets had been turned down. "What...?"

"You just keep on relaxing, sweetheart," Reno grinned at him, leaning down and kissing him. Cloud started to murmur against his lips, but then gave up, opening his mouth, moaning into the kiss as Reno's hands started to undo the buckles for his armor, the buckle of his belt. When they separated, Reno took the shoulders of the coat and shoved it back, so that it came down to Cloud's forearms. Then he got down to work on his boots, while Rufus sat down beside Cloud, cupped his cheek in his hand, and guided him to his own kiss.

He was only distantly aware of the weight of the boots sliding off his feet, or that the coat slid off his arms entirely, his hands becoming free, free enough without waiting for the gloves to come off, finding their way into Rufus's clothes and sliding under the silken shirt to touch the other man's skin. He hadn't really noticed before that the Shinra President was muscular, as he certainly wasn't bulky, but he obviously relegated time to his work-outs... then again he held his rifle one-handed, so...

And then he felt a teasing hotness over his pants, right over his arousal, and all other thoughts skittered away as he groaned into Rufus's kiss, before breaking away, his back curving. When he forced his eyes open, he saw Reno between his legs, smirking up at him before he placed his mouth over the crotch of his leather pants and breathed out again. Cloud bit back the sound that tried to well up out of his throat, heard Rufus's soft laugh beside him.

"Tell me again, Cloud. Tell me that you like this."

"I..." And he didn't even have the mind to be angry about this, frustrated--everything beyond the other two men in the room had faded out of focus, and the heady feeling was--was wonderful, in a way, without--worrying--about what? "I like this."

"You like what?"

"Mmm!" He bit his lower lip as his hips tried to push up against Reno's mouth, but all he managed was to arch his back again because Reno's hands were on his thighs, holding him down. "I like... this feeling..."

"What feeling?" Rufus whispered, leaning over him, pushing his wrists down again.

"You... over... me, and my... my..."

"Your what?" Rufus pushed, and Reno looked up with a laugh as he reached with one hand and undid the front of Cloud's pants, drawing down the zipper so the only barrier that remained between him and Cloud's cock was the pair of underwear. "Do you like to pretend you don't have one? Is that why you pretended to be unavailable to everyone else?" He leaned down and forced open Cloud's mouth with his own again, while Reno took care of the rest of his clothing. When he pulled back, he said again, "What do you like?"

"T-that heat... on my... on my cock," Cloud managed, squeezing his eyes shut.

"Heh, good. Then you'll have no objection to giving me that same pleasure, now will you?" Rufus's hand in his hair again, pulling him just enough that Cloud had to open his eyes, see Rufus's pale blue eyes staring down intently into his own. "Will you, Cloud?"

"No, no..."

It was ambivalent, but it made Rufus grin, finally releasing Cloud so he could sit up against the pillows, make himself comfortable before Reno dragged Cloud up between his legs. Reno leaned over him, one arm around his chest as if to help support him if he fell or fumbled or--gods, maybe try to escape--but he reached with his gloved hand to try to undo Rufus's pants and couldn't manage it with the glove on, not this time, not with the alcohol buzzing in his system. Rufus only watched him as he bit one of the fingers of his own right hand, pulled the glove off with his teeth, before his fingers got open the button and zipper more successfully, this time. Rufus stroked his hair with one hand, his cheek with the other, and listened to Reno encouraging Cloud, whispering into his ear, "Go on, Cloud, you're almost there, and you want it, don't you? You want him. You want Rufus, and you want to feel him in your mouth, you were thinking about it that day with the berries, weren't you?"

And Cloud pulled down Rufus's sleek underwear enough for the other man's length to stand free of any obstructions, and Cloud licked his lips just looking at it. Then he pulled his head back, just enough to meet Rufus's eyes.

"May I...?"

"Yes, you may," Rufus said, benevolent, and Cloud's eyes grew heavy as he started licking around the base of Rufus's cock, sliding up the length, sometimes with the full width of his tongue, sometimes with just the tip, listening for the little noises Rufus made, the hitches to his breath, and Reno's encouragement behind him, still egging him on.

"Yeah, go for the tip, there you go, put your lips around it and suck it like you know you want to."

And he did, licking at the tip of Rufus's cock, finding the slit and sliding his tongue along that, before finally settling his lips around the head and sucking. Just when he thought he would go down, Rufus's hand in his hair gripped him more tightly, and before Cloud could really prepare, Rufus thrust upward into his mouth, taking away any illusion of control he might have had. Cloud's voice was muffled, but he quieted, concentrating instead on preventing himself from gagging as Rufus began pulling his head further down. In that way, the alcohol was helpful, because he knew it made him more relaxed, more capable of doing this, and--and--

Reno's chest against his back, his arm holding him up, supporting him, and the Turk's hard cock pressed against him, and Rufus's heat sliding into his mouth, into his throat, and back again--

"Look at me, Cloud," Rufus growled, and Cloud tried to raise his eyes, looking up at Rufus through his bangs, only to see Rufus staring down at him with a frightening intensity. "That's it... that's..." And Rufus cut himself off with a bitten back sound, but Cloud recognized the sensation of overwhelming pleasure easily enough, and resisted the way Rufus pulled on his hair as he came, hips jolting as he spilled inside his mouth.

"Don't you dare lose a drop of that," Reno warned him from behind. "You better swallow all of it. It's a present, isn't it?"

"Hmm..." And it was the only noise he could muster as he sucked, swallowed as Rufus grew more still. When Rufus finally pulled his head away, he nodded, then looked to Reno.

"Is he hard enough?"

And Cloud felt the Turk's calloused fingers sliding around him just as easily as they slid around his nightstick. "Oh, yeah. I think it's time."

"T-time?" Cloud managed, still licking his lips, when they turned him over, and Reno slid something down his cock, in a way that made his whole body tremble--and then he recognized the sensation. "A-ah, no..."

"A little delayed gratification never hurt anyone, now did it?" Rufus said. "Though it is pleasing to know that going down on me makes you hot enough to stand to attention."

Cloud tried to reach down to take the cock ring off, but Reno took his gloved hand and bit it, causing Cloud to cry out and moan, before Reno twisted him back around.

"On all fours," he ordered, "and yeah, we're turning to the side here so Rufus gets the best view of my cock pounding your ass. Not that you'll like that at all, will you?"

"P-please," Cloud started, but went unresisting as Reno pulled him around, turned him over, and slid a slick finger down his crack. He shut his eyes and shuddered, but Reno didn't take too long before sliding his finger right into Cloud's entrance.

"Oh yeah, just a little more relaxed now... you're gonna feel so good on my cock." Cloud could hear the cap of a tube coming off again, panted and braced his head against his arms on the bed. "Just wait until I get my nightstick out. Some other night, huh?"

And just the image was enough to make him tremble, as he felt the tip of Reno's cock replace his finger. When Reno began to push inside, slowly, slowly, he groaned, and unlike Cloud or Rufus he had no problem doing so unrestrained, and with a sharp thrust of his hips he dug himself in to the hilt. Cloud gasped and flung out a hand to curl into the sheets at that, and Reno sat there for a time, unmoving, as if measuring the feeling of Cloud's body around him.

"G-gods, so tight..." Reno breathed, his hands grabbing Cloud's own hips. "Rufus... R-rufus..."

"Do it, Reno," Rufus ordered. "Do him."

"Heh." And then Reno began to move, holding his hips in place while he fucked him, drove into him, first with short thrusts that kept him deep in Cloud's ass, and then drawing himself out further, so that his head brushed the ring of muscle around Cloud's rectum, before ramming forward again, and sending jolt after jolt down Cloud's back. He wasn't certain how long it lasted, but it felt too long, his own cock aching beneath him, and his eyes screwed shut. When Reno came, with one long stream of expletives, he pressed back into the frantic thrusts, felt Reno's come up his ass, knew he'd feel it down his thighs later. Reno pulled back, caught his breath and his consciousness back. Cloud didn't move, only shuddered, but that didn't stop Rufus from running his hand down Cloud's back.

"Did he do a good job?" he asked, and Cloud wasn't certain if he was talking to him or Reno, until the Turk answered.

"Yeah. Coulda used a bit more enthusiasm, but I'll give him a B+ for the effort, anyway. When he's really into it, that's gonna be epic." A slap across his ass, causing him to startle, less from the sting and more for the suddenness of it. "Turn over, kid."

Cloud struggled to comply, finally managing to roll over, and sliding his bandaged arm over his eyes, breathing heavily. He felt all tense up and too loose all at once, that he could spill out in several directions and yet was completely restrained. It was maddening, and he wanted to touch himself so badly, but he knew if he did--if he did, they'd just punish him--and--

"P-please," Cloud whispered, as he felt another hand--not Reno's, but Rufus's, he was certain of it--on his cock. "Please let me..."

"Please let you what, Cloud?" Rufus questioned him, sliding his hand slowly down Cloud's length before sliding over his taut balls. "Do you want to go down on me again? Perhaps Tseng? He's just outside--"

"No," Cloud cried out, covering his face with both hands. "Please let me come."

"That's not all. Say it properly."

"Please let me come, Rufus...! Please!"

"Ah, he asks so prettily, doesn't he, Reno?" Rufus chuckled, but he also started to move away, and Cloud removed his hands from his face, looking on in a dazed panic as Rufus slid off the bed, picked up something from nearby.

"Yeah. He's getting there, but I think he still lacks the, whatchamacallit, sincerity," Reno said, grinning at Cloud as he leaned over him, bracing his hands together so Rufus could slide the metal around his wrists, and attach it to one of the poles of the bed. Cloud realized it was a handcuff, the kind that could fit around both wrists, and started to move, to get away, but the alcohol was still strong enough in his system that the sudden movement only made him dizzy. When Reno pushed him back against the bed he couldn't resist, was still orienting himself as he opened his eyes, felt something cool around his ankles, heard the click of a second pair of restraints connecting to the post at the other side of the bed. "There we go. All stretched out, pretty as a picnic."

"Mm." Rufus slid his hand along Cloud's body, then nodded in satisfaction. "We'll be back later. I have a report I'm expecting from your friends in Cosmo Canyon that should be in my inbox by now."

"Please," Cloud forced out between his teeth, watching as Rufus put himself back to rights, stood by the door, and Reno went to join him. "Please, don't... don't leave me like this... Rufus..."

"You're right. We're forgetting a very important touch, aren't we?" Rufus nodded to Reno, who slipped his tie off from around his neck. Cloud's eyes widened as the Turk undid the knot to pull it out to its full length, then came closer.

"N-no!"

"Too late," Reno said cheerfully, tying the tie around Cloud's eyes. "There. Ain't too tight. Oh, and before we go, you really oughta have this."

And whatever "this" was, Cloud couldn't tell, because his left forearm was suddenly in great pain, so great his back arched and his limbs pulled on his restraints, causing the bed to shift as he bent the metal. Reno only laughed, he could hear the laughter, before joining Rufus at the door. Somehow Cloud could feel both their eyes on him, on their handiwork, and bit his lower lip to keep himself from whimpering.

"Have fun," was all Reno said, cheerfully, before Cloud heard the door open, and then click shut yet again.

***

He lay there trembling for some time, panting at first, then listening, trying to calm down. His cock hurt--he wanted to find relief so badly--but he knew he couldn't so long as he had that ring on and if he pulled his hands forcibly from the shackles then he'd break the bed and then Rufus would--Rufus would probably be amused, actually, but then he would punish him, and somehow it would be worse than this.

And gods, his left arm was still burning, distracting him from what else he should be doing, listening for clues, for signs of when the others were coming back. Someone was standing outside the door, and of course it had to be one of the Turks, but which one was less certain until he heard a tread of feet or a voice, and the room appeared to have been somewhat soundproofed. Good to know that he wasn't entirely witless—

_"...they think they can use me to use you..."_

He would recognize that voice, forever and ever, and behind the blindfold his eyes grew wide, searching. He felt a familiar gloved hand, resting over his scar, and he grew still, calm, just from that familiar touch.

_"It's amusing. But they can only do so much, can't they?"_

"Mm." It was a murmur, as another hand stroked his hair, his cheek, ran over his lips. The other hand continued sliding down his body, familiar, loving, until it reached his cock, and covered it. That made him whimper, until he felt the ring slid off. "Ah..."

_"Shh..."_

The hand over his lips stroked them one more time, and Cloud grew quiet as he felt that other lean over him, stroke him, cage him, trap him. He could just feel the drape of silver hair, the touch of those ice-cold lips to his own, to his throat, to his shoulder, to his scar.

And that, more than anything else, caused him to bite his lip as he came, bucking beneath the other's body, or the sensation of the other's body, because...

"...r-real?" he asked, feeling his whole body trembling, as taut as a string all over again. And then he just heard that familiar chuckle in his ear, felt the whisper of green slither inside his head.

_"Mine."_

***

When he woke up, the shackles were gone, as was the blindfold. He was in his own quarters, staring up at the ceiling, and he had a hell of a headache. Raising a hand to his face, he massaged his temple, then became acutely aware of someone else standing in the room. Almost at once he was up on his feet, but stopped, only sitting up, when he saw Tseng standing nearby. Rufus sat beside him in a chair dragged in from the office.

"What...?" he asked, and Rufus pushed himself to his feet, using his cane to steady himself.

"A very good question," Rufus said, his gaze shuttered as he came closer. "The bed had only bent that little bit from earlier... there's no way you could have freed yourself long enough to remove the ring, and then just so perfectly position yourself afterwards in the chains again."

"The security feeds for the room during that time period are full of static," Tseng said, watching Cloud with his usual expression, which was about as difficult as Vincent's to read. "What do you remember?"

"It... It wasn't one of you?" Cloud asked, before looking to Rufus, and Rufus frowned at him.

"If it was one of my personal guards, I'd sure as hell like to know." He growled as he came closer, and suddenly swung the cane--it was only Cloud's instincts that saved him from having a crushed windpipe, as his hands came up and caught it so that he was only pushed back down on the bed. "You're mine, Strife. The game is all well and good, but I don't appreciate unknown players sneaking in to claim you."

"R-Rufus," Cloud managed, and Rufus finally relented, pulling the cane back and thumping it into the carpeted floor, decisively.

"You're right, of course. You're not to blame for whatever happened. But that room was locked tight, and that ring couldn't have come off on its own." He ran his hand through his hair, then laughed, looked down at Cloud with a savage grin. "I believe you're talented, wolf, but not that talented. Regardless, this isn't a mystery that can be solved right now, and I shouldn't waste too much time here. Consider yourself off-duty for today, Cloud. If we need you you'll get the summons."

"Yes, sir," Cloud said, his gaze more on Tseng, who simply nodded. "I... Will we..."

"Hmm?" Rufus paused on his way to the door, looking over his shoulder at Cloud. "Will I call you back for dinner tonight, is that what you want to know?" The corner of his mouth quirked up. "You'll find out, now won't you?"

***

And Rufus didn't call him back that night, but Elena of all people turned up, looking at him and begrudgingly giving him thanks for his help dealing with the chimera as she put the tray of food down. Cloud was surprised he was hungry again, but he was, and ate everything on the tray down to the plate of gysahl greens to the side--a sure sign from Rufus that he was thinking of him, he was sure.

"Oh, right, I'm supposed to tell you," Elena said, from the chair where she'd made herself comfortable in the office, "that you have an appointment tomorrow, first thing. Rude'll take you there."

"First thing," Cloud said, and she shrugged, clasped her arms behind her head.

"Oh-eight-hundred. As usual, full uniform required."

And her brown eyes looked at him, and even though she was fine with him in theory, he also knew his presence bothered the hell out of her. And why not? He was, after all, in her eyes, another monster... just one that Rufus happened to have on a leash, like Dark Nation.

***

Melantha was quick, he had to give her that much. She took his vitals, had him do some short exercises, took his vitals again, and then did a quick blood draw... before she administered the shot of medicine. He kept his eyes closed the entire time, and even with the mask and visor on she seemed to know by the lack of Mako glow, had no problem leading him by the hand either to the equipment for taking his vitals, or to the SOLDIER-standard exercise equipment. But the shot of medicine did feel odd, and it made him feel calm, and once she pronounced she was finished he watched her taking off gloves and putting things away.

"Does he have medicine he's giving me?" he asked, and Melantha turned, blinking in mild surprise. Eventually her brain caught up, and she realized why he was being vague, and she blushed.

"Ah. Well. He has... some things from the department, yes." Her brow furrowed, and she picked up the clipboard where she'd jotted down the information of his vitals. "Everything seems normal, though--well, normal for a SOLDIER of your caliber, anyway."

"What would they do?"

"Well, it's largely to help keep you... contained, in case you... get any ideas about remaining here. Or not remaining here, as the case may be." She put the clipboard aside, gripped the edge of the countertop as she leaned back against it. "If he used one on you recently, your body has burned through it abnormally quickly. There should still be traces of it in your bloodstream. Drugs that strong don't just fade away overnight."

"Two nights ago," Cloud said, and she shook her head.

"Two nights, then, but there should still be traces of it. Even slight ones. That means your metabolism is a bit more heightened than I expected..."

"Why did you give him that?"

Melantha blinked, in the midst of jotting down more notes. "Ah? Well, for one, he is my employer, and two... I was... made aware of the delicate nature of his relationship with you, and that having tranquilizers adequate for your body type might be necessary."

"Really... just tranquilizers?" Cloud asked, and she nodded.

"That's all I've given him."

He fell silent at that, pushed himself off the examination seat. "Thank you, doctor."

"Of course, Fenrir. If I... If I see anything strange, I'll let you know."

He only nodded, rubbed at his left arm uncomfortably before leaving the specialized medical treatment center for SOLDIERs, and found himself suddenly staring at Scarlet.

"Well now, top secret operative," she said, flashing him a grin of her own, "I need you for some testing purposes."

Cloud shook his head.

"What do you mean, no?" she said, hands on her hips. "I was under the impression that you were to be used by all the departments for any special duties that might be too dangerous for those SOLDIER brutes to handle."

"I only take orders from the President," Cloud said.

"He's right, Miss Scarlet, and besides, I gotta take him away myself now." It was Reno, from further down the hall, walking toward them with the same slouch as ever, but with a certain spring in his step. "Fenrir, we need you to assist a scavenging convoy returning from Sector Seven. Boys got themselves in some deep shit--Siegfried's faction got to them."

"Siegfried?" Scarlet said. "The hell--I thought he was dead!"

"So did we, but apparently not," Reno snapped. He turned and started back down the hall, calling over his shoulder, "Come on--we ain't got time for this."

He followed Reno to the transportation block, where a number of SOLDIERs were standing at the ready, and one of them held out a sword for Cloud to take. He took it, put it to his back with a nod, and could gather from the sound of several Hardy Daytonas revving up what he was to do.

"Lead the pack, Fenrir," Reno said. "Turks'll be right behind providing air support, but we need you all to take out any heavy artillery. Go get 'em and rip their hearts out."

Cloud nodded, and looked to the SOLDIERs. They all just nodded back, and without another word he mounted the nearest Hardy Daytona, revving it up before opening up the accelerator at full throttle. The tires screeched against the pavement of the garage before finding purchase and then lurching forward like a big cat lunging for the kill. The other Hardy Daytonas followed closely behind, as he wove his way through the debris of Midgar toward the north, toward Sector Seven's ruins.

Clemson pulled up alongside him, making a hand gesture indicating a left turn. Cloud nodded, and went to the right, while the SOLDIERs diverted their bikes to the left. He heard the sound of the initial attack, the sound of artillery going off, and, seeing a hill of debris, pointed his bike at it and went for it full speed. The bike managed to climb up the side of the debris until he reached the top, slowing down and looking at the tableau below. The SOLDIERs were working their way through a rather impressive line of robots, which were forming a shield for what appeared to be troopers in crimson uniforms, instead of the Shinra standard blue. Frowning, his gaze took in a line of robots that had heavy canons on their backs, and just a short distance away were the scavenger trucks, with the drivers and team tied up in a line beside them.

Cloud grinned, and drew the sword. He wouldn't even need the bike for this.

***

His descent was soundless, at least until his sword struck through the artillery robot. The resulting shriek of metal and the explosion behind him as he stood up from his landing caused confusion among the enemy ranks, and Cloud heard someone shouting that there was a bogey behind them, stop him--

 _But you can't stop me._ Cloud grinned as he took off another robot's legs. Another one of the heavy cannons tried to shoot at him, but he was standing right in front of a third, and its blast wound up blowing a hole through it as he neatly dodged the shot. He could hear the approaching sound of helicopters, heard the troops in crimson sounding the retreat, but as he took out the legs of the fourth and final heavy artillery 'bot, he turned his head and glared at them.

"W-what the hell..."

"Fenrir! Keep one alive for questioning!" The shout came from Clemson, as the SOLDIERs kept fighting another line of robots, and Cloud nodded, standing up and swinging his blade before sliding into a ready position. The crimson troops opened fire, but he was already darting to the side and running up at an angle at one of them, slamming his elbow into the troop's helmet and sending him sprawling to the ground. Cloud grabbed the troop's gun before it could hit the ground, smashed it into the next trooper's side to break the weapon—and maybe some ribs in the process--and then simply went down the line. They tried to scatter, but then he put the sword away and just came after them, taking them out with well-placed blows to the backs of their knees, or swinging them around so he could punch them in the face and then throw them to the ground. The helicopters hovered above, turning on searchlights down below, and Tseng's voice was broadcast clearly.

"You're surrounded, and the robots won't last much longer. Surrender and those of you who are alive might stay alive."

Cloud straightened up, heard the answering groans, and looked up to watch as one of the SOLDIERs cut down the last of the smaller robots.

There were more vehicles coming--he could hear them in the distance, most likely some of the Shinra's "clean up crews," who would scavenge what they could from the robots and take the men in for questioning. The SOLDIERs were rounding up the crimson troops still alive, and one of them went to set free the Shinra personnel. Cloud stepped away from the searchlight, started up the hill of debris toward the Hardy Daytona. Once he reached the top of the hill, though, he found himself staring clear to the old wall that circled the city. It was battered and broken in some places, moreso here than in any of the other sectors, which explained why there always seemed to be more monster incursions there. And Sector Seven was still a labyrinth of the fallen plate and the slums and other wreckage that had fallen during Meteor. He looked down at the scene below, at the milling SOLDIERs and the Shinra troops, then back to the wall.

And he ran for it.

***

At first, just the thrill of escaping drowned out anything else. He heard Tseng's voice behind him, thought he even heard one of the SOLDIERs break off from the rest in pursuit, but he was fast, and, as Rufus had touted during the board meeting, compact, making it easy for him to squirm his way into tunnels of wreckage where he wouldn't be seen and the SOLDIER couldn't follow.

He would get out. He'd get out, strike out for Kalm, find a way to contact one of the others. Not Tifa, not immediately, it would be too obvious. But he'd contact the others, agree on a place to meet up, and they could discuss what they were going to do, how'd they tackle Midgar and its dangers and--and the Shinra, really. He didn't know how he'd handle them, not in the long run, but he decided it didn't matter.

He just needed to be free.

He encountered another group of crimson-clad troopers as he approached one of the gaps in the wall, but he leaped clear over them, and by the time they tried to open fire on him he was already moving away from the wall, into the badlands.

The bursts of speed he had used within the last two hours finally started to catch up with him, and he slowed down, first to a jog, then to a trot, then to a walk, and then finally stood still, panting and looking back toward Midgar. He couldn't see any signs of pursuit anymore, wondered if they had given up so quickly, or if Rufus was just that confident in--whatever the hell it was he had done to him. With a snort, he straightened, pulled off the helm. He raised an arm to throw it away, but stopped at the last second, raising the visor to look at the mask...

...and its blank, empty gaze, staring back at him, and its small, perfect smile.

He snapped the visor back down, and just shook his head, held the helm in the crook of his arm. If he ditched it here, anyway, it could be found, and they would know which way he had gone. They'd probably already guessed he was headed for Kalm, but if he could reach there before they could mobilize any local forces...

***

The badlands had changed, but not much. It was just--they were more bleak than he remembered, and they were pretty damn depressing before. He thought it was the overclouded sky, the flecks of snow that started to come down as he headed further north. He knew he needed to turn eastward, but he wanted to see the ocean, so he kept going north.

He'd encountered a few monsters, but he had dealt with them easily enough. He just kept walking, until he reached the cliffs overlooking the ocean, with the waves crashing against the rocks. He sat down, set the helm aside, rubbed at his left arm, looked out at the ocean... and then down below. The waves crested, slammed into the rocks so powerfully, throwing foam and spray upward. It might even be enough to take him down, if he didn't drown first.

He licked his lips, realized he tasted blood, wondered at which point he'd gone after a monster with his teeth. Decided it didn't matter, and lay back, staring up at the snow drifting down from the sky.

***

He woke up, startled, wondering when he had fallen asleep. A layer of fine snow fell from him, and he felt his left arm... and it was burning, like a thousand little points of fire digging into his skin. Gritting his teeth, he told himself that it didn't matter. It didn't matter. He would get to Kalm, he would manage to reach one of the others. He picked up the helm and got to his feet, but he didn't get far along the coastline before the pain reached a crescendo, just like the waves against the cliffs, and hit him so hard he stumbled, fell over.

Gasping, blinking away the lights in his vision, he stared at his left arm, wondered what the hell could possibly be going on--and why the hell his whole body hurt, his spine, his shoulders in particular. He tried to get up but only managed to roll onto his back.

_"Don't leave me."_

And the voice threaded through his brain rather than his ears, which were currently drowning in the sound of the waves against the cliffs, and he arched his neck back, looking toward the huddled metal mass of Midgar in the distance.

_"They'll turn us into monsters... every single one of us..."_

And he whimpered, picking himself up on his hands and knees, hand flinging out to pick up the helmet by the edge. Standing up was like trying to heft the whole world on his shoulders; the pressure kept pushing him down, bending his back. He kept walking, determined, but each step started to send pain shooting up his legs, and he did his best to ignore it, ignore the pain, even as his eyes began to burn and--

"You won't be able to leave, kid. They've made sure of that. Even if you get sent on a mission out of the city, you'll wanna come back."

\--and he remembered that clearly enough, from his prison, Reno leaning over him, and he knew it, then. They'd done something, something to him, and it was in his whole body, but how could it affect him while he had Sephiroth's cells, Sephiroth's strength, inside him?

The pain grew too great to think. He kept putting one foot in front of the other, and the howl of the wind and the crash of the waves gradually got drowned out by the roar of the Planet's voice. He'd been walking for some time when he looked up, and realized he'd been walking back into the badlands, not away from them toward Kalm. Grimacing, he turned himself back toward the east, started over again.

He'd get there... he'd get free...

_"Don't leave me."_

And the green--the green was everywhere. In his eyes, in his limbs, in his chest, worming its way around his heart, in his mouth, in his ears, in his brain. He could feel it twining around him and he could feel it--

\--curled up on the ground, his arms wrapped around his middle to fight back the pain, he turned his head and saw familiar black boots, the hem of a familiar black coat. His gaze traveled upward, but all he could make out was the green, those eyes, before the figure turned away and started back toward Midgar. He cried out, screamed after it, realized his throat was hoarse and wondered for how long he had been curled up in pain, screaming--but he wasn't even certain anything came out, or if the green swallowed that too.

And even though he stood up, broke out into a desperate run, that figure with the long silver hair just kept walking, walking away from him--

_"Don't leave me."_

And he wondered if it was his own voice, after all.

***

He ran. He ran until the figure faded away into the shadow of Midgar, but he knew that the one he wanted, the one thing he wanted more than anything, was in there, and he had to get to it. He saw the wall starting to loom up before him, and then he saw the group of Turks, standing in a line, all waiting for him, like they'd known he was coming back, that he'd come back, it was so certain, just a matter of time. Just a matter of when.

He sank to his knees before he reached them, looked beyond them, hoping to find even just one shadow of the one that he wanted that he could cling to for comfort--but the ghost was gone, disappeared into Midgar, and he only looked up when Reno approached. The Turk's expression was unreadable, but maybe it was the green, still eating its way into his eyes. When he saw the nightstick come down he didn't resist... even welcomed the oblivion, when it came.

***

The first time Cloud stirred, he was in a Mako chamber, surrounded by the blue-green glow of liquid, and the pain had died down to a low roar, a familiar heat across his skin. He curled up on himself, and fell asleep.

The second time Cloud stirred, he was lying on the bed in his quarters, staring up at the ceiling again. He blinked, rubbed at his eyes, and realized that the green had receded. The pain had receded. He could feel things again, the things that were immediately surrounding him, not just the past.

"I tried to warn you, but of course you wouldn't believe me until it happened, huh?"

He turned on his side, facing the voice, and was completely unsurprised to see Reno watching him from the chair that they always dragged in from the office area. And he wasn't imagining things--the Turk's face was very carefully distant.

"How d'ya feel?"

"Numb," Cloud said, honestly. "E-empty." And gods, his voice was hoarse, and he licked his lips, tried to work a little more moisture into his mouth.

"I have to admit, you got farther than I thought you would, you stubborn ass," Reno said, and then his own lips quirked up into that grin, that other one, not the cruel one but the one that was some kind of respectful. "We tracked how far you got visually before you started on your way back… not that it was easy or nothin', you walked out of all our visuals."

"What... did you do to me?" he asked, and Reno stood up with a shake of his head.

"Can't tell ya that, and you know it." He came closer, to the side of the bed, sat down on it and reached down with a hand. "Are you gonna do somethin' stupid and try it again?"

"D-don't know," Cloud said, and that was also honest, and that made Reno laugh.

"Well, try not to do it too soon, or else Rufus won't think you worth all the time and effort after all. And you don't want that, do you?" He leaned down, stroking along Cloud's cheek. "Because you like it anyway, don't you?"

"Mm." It was ambivalent, but it was good enough for Reno, who straightened up.

"I'll get one of the others to babysit in the other room, give ya some space to recover," Reno said. "But, uh, I wouldn't count on that peace lasting for long, wolfie."

Cloud just watched him as he headed into the other room, had the decency to close the door, though he could hear the sound of voices on the other side, the sound of the outer door opening and closing. His eyes drifted shut, and he turned over onto his other side, curling up.

***

By the next time he stirred, he was feeling sufficiently awake and self-aware again that he could stand up without any problems, get himself to the bathroom. Even though he appeared perfectly clean, he showered anyway, pulled on some clothes, took a steadying breath before he opened the door to the office… and saw Rude sitting in the usual watchdog's chair, reading a chemistry magazine.

"Hi," Cloud managed, and Rude nodded in return. Cloud turned his attention down to the small coffee table... where there was a tray. The only two things on the tray was a plate with a solitary biscuit on it, and a thermos, which he suspected to be full of broth. Cloud stared at it for a moment, grinned wryly, then looked back to Rude. "Is he that angry with me?"

"A reminder," Rude said with a shrug.

"Hells, I think I got a strong enough one earlier," Cloud muttered, before giving up the chair to sit cross-legged on the floor. "By the way... Tifa... is she doing all right?"

The Turk just raised his magazine again, turned the page. "Not allowed to talk to you about her right now."

"Oh." Which he figured just made sense, anyway. He ate his biscuit in silence, drank his thermos of broth. He started to feel listless, wondered how long he'd been disabled, but he just stood up, set the thermos back down on the tray. Walking around the office didn't give him much relief, and he tried going through the SOLDIER kata he remembered, but that quickly grew tiresome. He browsed the bookshelves for a book to read--he'd already polished off the one about the history of Wutai--when there was a familiar chirrup. He turned his head to watch as Rude answered his PHS.

"Sir. Yes, sir. I'll bring him." Rude flipped the unit closed, then stood, tightening his glove. "You know what to do."

***

"I always suspected it was a matter of time before you'd try to test the limits of your leash," Rufus said from across the table. Though there was a place setting in front of Cloud, there was no food. Only Rufus had a meal in front of him, and Cloud simply accepted it as part of his punishment. "I didn't expect you to go for so long, though. Then again, I guess it's that stubbornness that helped you during your mission two years ago."

"Yes, sir," he said. Reno was in the doorway closest to him, twirling his nightstick as usual, because he could never sit still for too long. Rude had been let off duty after he'd escorted Cloud to the building; Tseng was in the other doorway, closest to Rufus of course.

"Still, you were warned, or at least Reno told me you were."

"He warned me, sir."

"And you thought to test it anyway."

He swallowed, dropped his gaze. "Yes, sir."

"Then it sounds like punishment is in order, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes, sir."

The soft clink of silverware being placed down onto a plate, and Cloud waited, wondering what it would be this time. Maybe he would tell Reno to use his nightstick this time. Maybe he'd find out that Rufus's kinks extended beyond bondage--hells, for all he knew, he was in for a swing that night.

"Come here, wolf."

Cloud stood up, gently pushing the chair back, and kept his gaze down as he went to stand beside Rufus's chair. He didn't want to see the look on Rufus's face.

"Tell me, what do you think is a fitting punishment?"

"I... I don't know, sir."

"You don't, do you?" Rufus pushed back his own chair, stood up, and Cloud flinched when he felt the other man's fingers touch his chin, turn his face up. Rufus's own expression was that shuttered one, the one with the icy wall between him and the rest of the world. "Then perhaps we'll just show you why your leash is so important." He released Cloud's chin, stepped around him. "Follow me."

"Yes, sir."

Tseng stepped aside for them as they went across the hall, into a proper living room. Cloud thought the place looked too pristine to have been used often, but there was an old beer bottle in the trash, which meant the Turks at least made use of it. There was a large television screen across the room from the couch, and Rufus sat down, crossed his legs. When Cloud came close, he pointed down at the floor, and Cloud sat, only to feel Rufus's hand descend into his hair.

"Reno, if you would be so kind."

"Sure thing, boss."

The lights dimmed, and the television set flickered on. Cloud blinked when he realized they were watching an old security feed, or something, because the quality was very grainy on the screen and there was a date and time display in the corner. When he saw the date, his eyes widened and he felt his heart sink, because that would have been during his time beneath Nibelheim, as one of Hojo's specimens.

The video showed a room. There was nothing spectacular about it, just two doors that led into it. The walls were barren, the floor unremarkable save for a few drains scattered about. One of the doors came open and he saw himself--young, naked, and scarred--stumble into the room, fall to his knees. Then the other door opened, and one of Hojo's amalgamation monsters loped out, huge and humanoid, with mandibles and giant pincers where it should have hands.

"We've muted the sound, so you don't have to hear the professor's voice," Rufus commented, stroking his hair. "But you should know that he said something about this being one of your survival tests. He expected you to be brought to the brink of death by that creature."

But the monster came after him, and Cloud watched as his younger self was lifted bodily into the air, and slammed into the ground, hard enough that the camera shook. The beast made to do it again, when his younger self suddenly slammed his arms free, leaped upon the creature, and began taking it apart with his bare hands. Cloud's eyes widened, because immediately a group of "orderlies"--Hojo's armed guards--came in, and his younger self made quick work of them, too, even with their guns. He didn't emerge unscathed, but with the amount of blood on him it was hard to tell where he'd gotten shot. It was only when Hojo himself appeared in one of the doors that his younger self shrunk away, backed into a corner, trembling, and Hojo shot him... with a tranquilizer, apparently.

A time skip, to a month later.

"And this was apparently one of his compatibility tests between strains of Jenova cells," Rufus said, murmuring a thanks to Tseng as he handed him a glass of wine.

It was the same room, the same godsdamned room, and Cloud's gloved hands clenched when his younger self was shoved into the room... and then another monster was let in, and it was a Jenova monster, had her monstrous mask of a face, her body that hinted at femininity, and all the frills and spines and tentacles that revealed her nature. The Jenova monster set upon him, and unlike the other unfortunate beast before, she was not so easily fought against. When Cloud saw what was coming next, he covered his eyes, but Rufus's grip tightened on his hair.

"No, you don't, wolf. You don't get to run away, this time."

And he forced his hands down, had to fight against shutting his eyes, because he wanted to, but each time he so much as blinked Rufus's grip would threaten him.

He had to watch. He had to watch what had happened to him. And gods...

***

"I have found some other recordings, if you'd be interested," Rufus said, afterwards, as the lights in the room brightened again. Cloud started to shake his head, then realized that that would not be appropriate, and he'd be punished again.

"N-no, sir."

"Ah, a shame. But you're right. It will be better if we dole this back out in small doses. You should see the ones that feature both you and Donovan." Cloud couldn't stop himself, then, his head whipped around to look up at Rufus with wide-eyed fear, only to see Rufus looking down at him, smirking. "They're endlessly fascinating," Rufus continued, touching his finger to the bottom of Cloud's chin. "But now, do you see why you need to be kept like this, Strife? It's for your protection, as well as the rest of the world's. If you were to lose it, get reduced to that state again... at your current strength, what could stop you? And obviously you lose the ability to tell the difference between friend or foe. You'd fight anyone. Any of them. They'd try to stop you, and it would be your hands tearing them apart." His thumb stroked over Cloud's lip. "You don't want to murder them, do you, Cloud?"

"No, sir."

"Then you're going to be a good boy tonight, aren't you?"

"Y-yes, sir."

***

There was a new bed in the room, and the door clicked shut behind them, but he didn't even get to see which Turk was there before Rufus was in his vision, hissing the command to strip. Cloud managed a bleak "Yes, sir," then started, removing the armor, the coat, the sweater top, the boots, the pants. He thought that Rufus probably wanted him to do it slowly, sensuously, but he couldn't even think of that. He only wanted to get it over with. He finally removed the gloves, leaving only the bandage over his arm, and Rufus glared at it for a moment, as if considering to tell him to lose that, too... before he changed his mind.

"Now, undress me," he said. "And make sure you put things away neatly, wolf. These suits are hard to come by since Meteor fell, and we don't want to waste things, do we?"

"No, sir." And he started removing the jacket, sliding it off Rufus's shoulders, hanging it neatly over the back of a chair. He glanced up and saw Tseng sitting in the corner, watching them with his dark eyes, unreadable, and Cloud swallowed before returning his attention to the shirt, and then the turtleneck beneath that. He removed the belt from around Rufus's waist, and realized as he knelt down to take care of the pants that this would actually be the first time he consciously remembered seeing Rufus naked, and that made his cheeks heat up again as he unbuttoned the pants, pulled the zip down, lowered them so Rufus could step out. Cloud folded it, placed it on the seat of the armchair where he'd put the rest of Rufus's clothes, and hesitated, then, looking up at Rufus's face, trying to read the next step.

"Go on," Rufus said, and Cloud nodded, remembered quickly a "Yes, sir" before he sank down to his knees. He ran his hands up Rufus's thighs, noting the scars that he knew must exist from Diamond Weapon's attack, tracing one that ran all the way down the length of Rufus's leg. If Rufus minded, he said nothing, and then Cloud hooked his fingers around the waistband of Rufus's underwear. Cloud looked up at Rufus's face as he started to pull them down, felt the heat of Rufus's erection near his face but did not look at it, just kept his gaze locked on Rufus's own before Rufus could step out from the underwear. Cloud broke away his gaze then, looked down to fold it, just as neatly as he had done the rest, and placed it on the seat of the chair.

"You could remember a few more caresses next time, wolf," Rufus said, and Cloud replied softly, hunching up his shoulders, expecting another blow to fall. "No matter. It's adequate. I am unclothed, and both our personal effects neatly put away. It's good enough. Now..." He set his hands to Cloud's shoulders, pulled him in for a hungry kiss before guiding him to the bed, and then to the pillows. "Fuck yourself for me. And look at me while you do it."

"S-sir?" Cloud stammered, and Rufus lay down across the length of the bed, propping himself up on his elbow.

"Give me a performance. Don't tell me you've never touched yourself while thinking of him--I know you have." He grinned, infuriatingly. "We have recordings of that, too."

Cloud clenched his eyes shut, then heard the warning tsk from Rufus before he opened them again, looked at Rufus's face, at his eyes, at the chill in them. He sat back against the pillows and the padded headboard, and after a moment shifted his legs in front of him rather than under him. At first he kept them closed together, but when his hand reached down Rufus made another sound, and Cloud spread them, slowly. It was ridiculous--it wasn't as if Rufus hadn't seen him naked before, especially there, in that place. Hells, he'd even seen him--the Jenova specimen--his breath caught, and he did close his eyes, taking a breath before looking at Rufus again.

Raising his left hand to his lips, he licked his fingertips before pulling them away, and shaking his head.

"C-can I... please have a glove?"

"Oh, why?"

"The bandage..."

"Why don't you use your other hand? I never had you pegged as a lefty, wolf. That's Reno."

And Cloud looked down, wondering... because he always had, when he'd done it alone before, and with the glove on, because... the leather... but Cloud knew if he started thinking about him, right then, that he'd be in danger of saying the wrong things, and then gods only knew what Rufus would do then. So he took a steadying breath, raised his other hand to his mouth, sucked on his fingers, before letting them stay wet from his saliva. His eyes still on Rufus, he lowered his right hand to his groin, slid the slick fingers around his cock. It was awkward, doing it with that hand, but he replicated the movement that he knew worked so well for him, the sure, steady strokes, coaxing his length to hardness. Before it was ready he let his hand slide down, stroke across his balls, gently apply pressure, and his breath caught as he watched Rufus's eyes grow heavy-lidded.

"Come now. Fuck yourself for me."

"Y-yes, Rufus," he whispered, using his left hand to stroke his nipples instead, tease them, lightly run over them before gripping the buds tightly, then letting go. He began to pant as his right hand continued stroking his length, which was growing good and hard in his hand, and his left hand stroked down the scar on his chest. "Ah..." And his eyes rolled back, closed despite himself, as his hips started to thrust upward to meet the strokes of his hand.

"Look at me, Cloud."

"Yes... yes, sir..." He stopped stroking long enough to force open his eyes, sit there, trembling, while he looked at Rufus. Rufus had pushed himself up, was still staring at Cloud intently, his own face flushed with arousal.

"Tell me what you want, Cloud."

"I want you," he breathed, stroking himself, watching as Rufus crawled over to him, took his chin in one hand. "I want you, Rufus..."

"What about me do you want?" Rufus said, kissing him, his cold gaze never leaving Cloud's. "Is it just my cock that you're hungry for, wolf?"

"N-no, Rufus," he said, and felt Rufus's hand on his hip, pushing him down so he couldn't thrust into his hand anymore, could only, desperately, stroke his cock. "I want... you..."

"Want me to what?"

"Want you to..." And his breath was starting to hitch, and he shook his head. "Please... please, don't make me... don't make me..."

At that, Rufus laughed, slid his hand back into Cloud's hair to hold him still. "Oh, no you don't. You're not going to get away with a denial this time. Tell me, or else I'll hand you over for Tseng for discipline. You don't want that, Strife."

His last name--a warning sign. Cloud nodded, as much as Rufus's hand would allow, and whispered, "I want you... to protect... me..." His breathing sped up, and so did his hand around his cock, starting to pump it. His left hand raised to Rufus's shoulder, gripped it tightly enough he heard a soft grunt of discomfort. "Protect everyone... from me..."

"That's right. And what are you doing to do, to pay me back for my generosity?"

"I... I..." His breath hitched. "I'll do... whatever you... want...!"

"Good boy," Rufus growled, and kissed him, and the hand that had been on Cloud's hip slid down to squeeze one of his ass cheeks, before sliding further in, and then one fingertip--just one--began to press inside him.

Cloud came. He couldn't keep his eyes open anymore, threw his head back and screamed, his hips bucking upward before driving down on that finger, and when Rufus withdrew his hand, he pushed Cloud down into the pillows, slickened his own cock with a single stroke of lube, and then pressed inside Cloud, fucking him. It hurt--even though Cloud had come, he wasn't that relaxed, hadn't been prepared--but that tinge of pain just made him cry out again, and his arms came up around Rufus's shoulders and his legs had wrapped around him, pulling himself into Rufus's thrusts. When Rufus bit into his neck, he could feel the other man come, this time pumping inside of him, and Cloud moaned, his back arching one more time. He hadn't had enough time yet to recover, but if he had, he knew he would have come again. This time, instead of removing himself completely, Rufus pushed him onto the bed, and lay on top of him, caging him, kissing him languorously, slowly, deeply, before falling onto his back and hauling Cloud up against his side, partly on top of him.

"Mine, now," Rufus murmured, pressing a kiss to Cloud's forehead. And Cloud didn't respond, just stared at the corner where Tseng was still sitting, unmoved by the display of lust at all, apparently... and the shadow in the other corner, watching them with the green.

"Yours," he mouthed, and shuddered, buried his face against Rufus's chest.

***

They didn't stay in bed together for that long. As soon as Cloud stirred again, he received a sharp nudge from Reno. He slipped out of the bed, doing his best not to disturb Rufus, and Reno dragged him out into the hallway to get dressed. Thankfully there was no one else there, at least not that he could see. Reno was silent, but led the way back down the stairs and out the front door. If Cloud had to guess, it was the early, early hours of the morning, past the point that any late-night partiers would be in bed, but before the first morning shift got up.

And Reno took him a slightly different route back to the main building, too, certainly not the standard one, and Cloud didn't doubt that that was to avoid some of the patrols. After all, the less people who saw these things, the better.

He felt strange about the entire evening, everything that had happened, and even when Reno opened the door to his quarters he hesitated before stepping inside. Reno followed him in, and Cloud removed the helmet immediately, setting it aside before getting out of his boots, and stripping out of the uniform as quickly as possible.

"Man, not even waiting for your bedroom, huh?" Reno said, and Cloud ignored him, looped the pieces of the uniform over his arm as he walked to the bedroom, lined the boots up beside the bedroom door.

"Reno," Cloud said, once he was inside, and headed for the shower, "do you agree with this plan of his?"

"Ain't my job to be telling ya that," Reno said, crossing his arms and leaning in the doorway, watching as Cloud turned on the water, a more mild spray than he usually used. "In fact I find it pretty damn funny that you're asking me."

Cloud looked up at Reno, hesitating before pulling off his underwear, dropping them beside the tub of the stall. "Never mind, then."

"Hmph. What. You want me to validate your feelings of sorrow or something?" Reno watched as Cloud turned into a blur behind the shower curtain.

"No. Just wanted to know if you thought it was going to work."

"Seems to have done the trick so far, hasn't it?"

Cloud lathered up his hair, rinsed it out, ran the rough hand towel over his body with the soap bar before washing that off as well. The shower took only five minutes, all told, and he pulled open the shower curtain to see Reno holding his towel out to him.

"Listen. My feelings on this don't mean shit, got that? But all of us ace Turks, anyway, we've seen the videos, and we know your secret. And I'll be honest, kid, the sight of you tearing things limb to limb in a berserker rage? Downright godsdamned terrifying. Kinda hot, too, but what can I say?" Reno grinned, showing teeth. "I like wild things."

"Is that... Is that why he has you there, some times?" Cloud asked, taking the towel and starting to dry off.

"Heh. That's for me to know. But we did agree that letting the cock that's fucked Lockheart fuck you might actually be crossing the damn line."

Cloud blinked at him, at that. "You mean--what--Rude?" He blinked again. "He would--if Rufus--"

Reno just saw the look on his face, burst out laughing. "I like you, Cloud. I really do. You're so godsdamned cute. Come on, let's get you into bed. If you like I'll even warm your back for you."

"You really don't have to," Cloud said, toweling off his hair, only to stop when Reno leaned down just to grin up at him.

"Maybe I don't, but if I say so, you do."

***

It wasn't that the days became normal, after that point. But there was a sense of rhythm to them. He was delivered breakfast, and then he was in uniform at the SOLDIER quarters, training them, and after a quick shower reviewing their current line up of assignments. After that he was usually required to sit at one of the executive meetings, though he didn't have anything to really say or do--he just thought that Rufus enjoyed having him sit to his right side. If the occasional foot gliding against his own meant anything...

After that, lunch in his rooms, and time off, and then, sometimes--he was summoned to work.

They'd finally given him a blade of his own. It wasn't Ultima Weapon--he didn't know where it was, or the Buster--but it was refined from their Ragnarok blade, and shaped more like the Organics. He didn't mind so much. He knew to most of the city he looked like a monster to begin with, so the sharp curved edges of the blade only seemed appropriate.

With winter coming on, their first main concern was to smoke Siegfried out of his hiding place so he could be put in his place, as Rufus put it. Cloud's job as Fenrir was to attack their supply lines without leaving any trace of what had hit them, and just cut them off from all of their supplies, until Siegfried was forced to come out with his small army and challenge them head on. Then sometimes he was sent out to defend the wall, which they were still desperately trying to shore up before winter drove more monsters to seek out the shelter and warmth of the city.

And Fenrir was very, very good at his job.

***

"The weapons department has finished conversion of all previously Mako-powered weapons to more standard weapons," Scarlet said, pushing some blonde hair back over her ear. "This means fewer lasers, but lots of bullets. We're going to have to be careful with ammo, though the supplies we've stolen from Siegfried's men have made it easier."

"Very good," Rufus said, making a note. "To review, then, we're still on target with all of our projects, minus some of the conversion of our air forces to renewable fuel sources. Correct, Palmer?"

"Yes, President," Palmer said, and since Meteor had fallen he seemed a lot less jovial, though Cloud wondered how much of that was Rufus scaring the shit out of him.

"Sir, if I might add something to plans for the future," Reeve said, "it's about time we set up the quarterly meeting date with Avalanche."

"Are they really still kicking around?" Scarlet asked, rolling her eyes.

"They're not just still kicking, but they're providing invaluable support in other areas that we can't afford to concentrate on," Rufus said, and all he did was look at her over his folded hands and she quieted. "Reeve, I trust you to make the proper arrangements. Inform me of the date and time, and we'll proceed from there."

"Yes, sir."

"If that's all, then I motion to adjourn," Rufus said, and there were murmurs of agreement from around the table to do so. "Then, meeting adjourned. Keep up the good work." The others filed out, and he looked over at Fenrir, who was sitting still, straight-backed, and silent the entire time. "Hear that? It's almost time for all of your friends to be in town. Won't that be exciting?"

"Yes, sir," he said, quietly, feeling Rufus's hand on his thigh, hot and subtly invasive. He didn't react, and Rufus finally withdrew with a chuckle.

"Have you been keeping all of your weekly appointments with Dr. Melantha?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. You've shown remarkable improvements since that little foray into the badlands of yours." He leaned back in his chair, only glanced up as Tseng re-entered the room after shooing the other executives out. "Can I take it to mean you're committed to our plan to keep you and the others safe, wolf?"

He shifted to look directly at Rufus, then. "Yes, sir."

"Good. Then I guess it's high time that I give you this." And Rufus reached down, and slid a card from out of his breast pocket, tossing it down in front of Cloud. There was no identification picture, but the rest of the information spelled out Fenrir's name and position as a special operative. "That will get you into all the locations you've been cleared for."

"There are others I haven't?" he asked, looking at the card, and Rufus chuckled.

"Perhaps. Perhaps not. I'll have another gift for you this evening, but right now Tseng is going to brief you on your next mission. Don't disappoint me, Fenrir."

"Of course not, sir." Cloud watched as he stood up and left, and Tseng put a briefing folder down in front of him.

"It's time, Fenrir. Siegfried's not come out yet, which indicates his stores are greater than we expected. You need to find him with your fangs."

***

Of course, it wasn't exactly a solo mission. The regular army was distracting the main force surrounding Siegfried's base by attacking from the front and rear. This gave the illusion of the Shinra attempting a desperate pincer attack, and kept Siegfried's forces occupied from two opposite directions. The SOLDIERs were leading the regulars--it was his job to get in while the force was distracted, find Siegfried, and take him out.

Crouched down on top of a support structure nearby Siegfried's base, Cloud looked for his entry point. Siegfried's base appeared to be a number of old Shinra bunkers cobbled together, connected to the downed remains of one of their great airships, which made locating the specific doorway more difficult. He thought he could see it, but before he could jump down and begin his mad dash in, there was a voice from beside him.

"You're the new one I've heard about."

He was startled, and whirled about with his blade out, only for his wrist to be caught by a cold, metal-enclosed claw. Then he saw the crimson eyes staring at his mask, at his visor, and he immediately withdrew his attack, putting his sword at his back.

"You're Valentine," he said, and Vincent nodded, balancing easily on the scaffolding beside him, cape fluttering in the chill air.

"I take it your mission is to end this?" Vincent said, surveying the grounds below. With another nod, he looked back up at Fenrir. "I shall join you."

"It is to be a solo mission," Cloud said, feeling his gut twist. "If you wish to assist, the forces below could use it."

"Thankfully, I'm not beholden to your chain of command," Vincent said. "I'm coming with you."

***

Cloud knew better than to argue--Vincent was just as stubborn as the other members of Avalanche--but he hoped he wouldn't be too obvious. There weren't too many advanced special operatives that were his height. They'd added some thicker soles to his boots, even a slight heel, to make him appear taller, but Vincent wasn't the sort to be fooled by that. Still, he nodded, and then didn't say anything else but dove off from the structure. He heard Vincent right behind him, and the moment his feet touched down he was sprinting for one of the side entrances guarded by Siegfried's heavily armed and armored machines.

Vincent must have had his gun out, because one of the robots lost its optical sensor just as it swerved to look at them, and by the time the second one also turned Cloud had plowed into it with his blade, using his forward momentum and the weight of the thing as a battering ram through the armored door. He let Vincent finish off the one he started, and ran inside with a quick slash to take out the guard beside the door, who was still staring stupefied at the sparking wreckage of machine in front of him. He heard Vincent coming behind him as he took off. They didn't have a detailed blueprint of Siegfried's base, but he had memorized the information they had mapped out from the captured troops. He knew he was headed toward one of the stairwells that would lead down.

More troops got in the way, and he didn't waste time with them, slashing left and right to incapacitate them, injuring their arms so they would be unable to fire after them. He finally stopped as he reached a pair of double doors, and slashed them with his sword to damage them before raising his foot and kicking them in. The doors bust open and fell, breaking through the guardrail and falling down several flights of stairs, and a few confused and shocked troopers stared upward in quiet shock. Cloud just grinned from behind his mask. He jumped down the middle of the stairwell, bypassing the troops and the steps so he could get straight to the bottom floor.

Ignoring the exclamations from the guards at the bottom landing, he picked one up by the throat and flung him out of the way, breaking his way through the next set of doors. Down here, the walls were rough, hewn into the ground, with the distinct scent of the Midgar sewers floating up through the vents. Cloud ignored the smell, simply started down the hall.

Vincent caught up to him, and slowed down to walk beside him, taking the opportunity to reload his handgun. For a moment, Cloud had that feeling--that wonderful feeling--of togetherness that the two had shared before, how they could work together without saying a thing, how Vincent could just get him.

"Wait," Vincent breathed, and Cloud immediately stopped, listening. He could hear the hum of energy, nearby, could feel the seething anger of the Planet--a Mako reactor, a small one, but enough to power Siegfried's base and machines.

They both jumped back as a blast suddenly exploded between them, throwing up bits of the floor. Turning to look in the direction of the shot, peering through the cloud of dust and smoke, they saw a man in a military uniform wearing an exosuit, charging toward them with clawed hands held forward like spears. Vincent opened fire, but a barrier blocked his bullets. Cloud growled as he rushed forward. He jumped before he could be impaled on the claws, and landed neatly behind the machine, turning with a slash to disable its barrier generator. He heard the man inside cursing, and the machine whirled around, catching him with one of his arms and flinging him into the wall. He grunted, pushed himself up, saw Vincent opening fire on the suit's back, aiming for the connectors of its limbs. The man inside--Siegfried, if the profile picture was correct, with the Heidegger family jawline and dark hair—cursed, turned the suit around to face Cloud and rammed one of its arms forward.

He was too far into the damn wall to move quickly out of it, but he did duck out of the way. Siegfried let go of the controls long enough to pull a handgun out from a holster, and fired it at Cloud's helmet.

"Die, you damned monster!"

There was a shock of light, and Cloud grunted as he fell back. The helm held fast, but as he sat up, the visor cracked and part of it fell away, revealing more of the Jenova mask beneath. Siegfried stopped at the look of it, it's eerie feminine smile and the glaring Mako blue eyes behind it, and that was all the hesitation Cloud needed. He jumped forward, plunging the tip of his sword through the suit's protective cockpit cage, then pulled it back again as it cracked and fell. With a laugh, he reached in with his hand, grabbed Siegfried by the collar of his decorated jacket, and turned, snapping the harness that kept Siegfried in the machine and flinging him to the ground. Vincent was beside him in minutes, gun pointed to his head, and Cloud sliced the exosuit in half for good measure. He returned, held the point of his sword at Siegfried's chest.

"Call off your army, and cease aggressions immediately," he growled, and the distortion the mask lent to his voice made it even more vicious than he meant it to sound.

Siegfried glared up at him, only sparing a glance toward Vincent. "You're his new hound, are you? His godsdamned new monster? I heard about you--at least we use honest machines rather than lying about using Mako on human beings."

Cloud's eyes narrowed. "Your honest machines use Mako, and drain the Planet of precious resources, which only makes this winter worse. Now do it. Call ceasefire and surrender immediately."

The other man continued glaring at him, but when Vincent pulled back the hammer of his gun his hand leapt to the inside of his jacket, pulling out a communications unit.

"Attention, all hands. This is General Siegfried. I--I'm calling a ceasefire, immediately. We surrender."

"Good." Cloud put the sword to his back and reached down again, picking Siegfried up easily and twisting him around, pulling his arms behind him. He clapped cuffs on him, and then looked to Vincent.

"What are you going to do about the Mako reactor?"

"The plan was to stop it by any means necessary," Vincent said.

"I believe I can deactivate it." He shoved Siegfried to Vincent, who grabbed him with his claw. "Take him above. If I can't deactivate it, I'll set it to self-destruct."

"That's incredibly dangerous," Vincent said, and Cloud started walking for the doorway to the reactor, and said nothing in response. He just heard the clack of Vincent's boots against the floor as he went immediately for the stairway, hauling Siegfried along with him. Cloud forced open the door to the Mako reactor room, ignoring the heady smell of sweet Mako in the air, and went to the reactor's control panel. Gods, the place didn't fit safety requirements at all--anyone who wanted to control it would have to come in with an armored hazmat suit, and even that wouldn't be enough to keep all the Mako out. Siegfried had been poisoning his own people who worked on it.

His left arm began to ache, greater than he was used to normally, and he ignored it, went to the controls and searched for the deactivation switch. After a few moments' study, he found it, and pulled the lever down. The Mako reactor began beeping to indicate the imminent shutdown in one minute, which would cease all operations within the base, and the lights all around immediately flickered into safety mode to conserve energy.

He ignored it, turned and walked out, swinging his blade before resting it against his back... only to see Vincent, watching him from the corridor.

"Who are you?" Vincent asked.

***

"I am Fenrir," Cloud said, staring back at him.

"No, not your codename. Who are you, really?" Vincent straightened from where he was leaning against the wall, and stepped forward, sweeping his cape out of the way. "You move like him... you stand like him... but if it is you, why--"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he interrupted. "But the energy in this facility is going to go. Where is Siegfried?"

"I handed him over to one of the First Class SOLDIERs," Vincent said, smoothly. "Now answer me. Where did you come from?"

Gods, it hurt. "I don't know."

Vincent took another step forward, advancing on him, invading his space, and he stepped back. "Take off the mask, then."

"I--I cannot."

"Why can't you?"

"I'll die." And the lie slid so easily from his lips he thought he should be ashamed, but it did make Vincent pause.

"Are you chained to it, then?" he murmured, and Cloud nodded.

"If it is removed and I am not in a proper facility, I will die."

"Dangerous, then. But that doesn't answer the question of where you came from."

"I don't know," he insisted.

Vincent started to come closer, but the lights gave one final flicker and then went out. For a moment, there was silence, but both of them had eyes that adjusted quickly to the darkness, the blue-green glow of Cloud's eyes causing an odd aura in the darkness.

"I need to report back to base," he said, quickly.

Vincent started to shift forward one more time, but stopped, sank back on his heels. "You're right. I apologize. We should both return to our bases." He turned with a sweep of his cape--Cloud saw the ripple of it in the dark, heard the folds flap in the cool air of the underground tunnels. "I will see you at the meeting, then, I take it."

Cloud let him walk on ahead, and only once Vincent reached the stairwell did he start to follow. It was a pain, maneuvering back up the stairwell with its damaged landings and broken stairs in the dark, but there were lights overhead, lamps and lanterns to light the way. Vincent ignored the questioning looks of the Shinra staff and just walked past them, and then one of the SOLDIERs turned away with a shake of his head, and saw Fenrir staring after Vincent.

"Sir! Your--your visor, your mask, are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Third Class." And he started walking away, too, ignoring any other questions or looks he received. He saw Vincent outside, speaking with Tseng, before his friend leaped up into the air and all but disappeared. Cloud simply walked up to Tseng, stared up at him.

"Does he suspect?" Tseng asked, his voice little more than a whisper.

"He has to," Cloud breathed, and Tseng's gaze narrowed.

"All right, then. Come on, we have to return home."

"Yes, sir."

***

Dinner included a glass of Ambrosia--but only one--and another attempt at the Nibel dragon stew, which normally would have made him more nervous, but given the way Rufus was reading reports at the dinner table, he knew he wasn't in any great amount of trouble. If Tseng thought that Vincent's suspicions had anything to do with him, he wasn't being punished for it, at least not that night.

"Of course Siegfried had to break something, though," Rufus mused, lifting up the helm with the partially shattered visor. "We'll have to keep you from your friends at the meeting unless we get it repaired in time, then." And that was when Cloud realized that the mask gave Rufus an excellent excuse for Fenrir not to attend the meeting. Rufus set the helm aside, then set his chin on his hands, looking across the table at Cloud. "But you did perfectly, my wolf. You've done nothing but meet my expectations."

"Thank you, sir," Cloud said, and watched as Rufus's hand reached across the table, gently running over his knuckles.

"I was going to wait until after I gave you your present to fuck you, but I want you. Now."

***

And he did fuck him. Vigorously, more than once, but at least this time he prepared him, unlike some of the other times when he liked to watch Cloud squirm, break beneath him, shatter. It was still rough, though, rough enough to make him fear there was some blood trailing down his thighs by the end, but it would heal quickly enough, and he didn't have the time to check because Rufus turned him over and kissed him, smothered him and stroked his scar, listening to Cloud moan beneath him. Even when Rufus was done, and wanted a break, he handed Cloud over to Reno, who pushed him to his knees while he leaned back against the wall and ordered Cloud to suck him.

Cloud was used to this by then, though that night was... more enthusiastic on all sides. He never once raised a hand to object, and the only time he started to cry out "No" was when Rufus was in him to the hilt, and threatened to leave him, leave him unfulfilled.

At the end, he was in the bed, between the two of them--Reno was surprisingly clingy, spooning against his back; Rufus of course was absolutely not, though he did fall asleep with one hand over Cloud's wrist, possessive even still. He couldn't sleep, despite the sex, despite the times he had come. Instead he lay there, and he wondered about Rufus's present. He dreaded it, but that didn't stop the curiosity all the same.

***

A few hours passed before Reno stirred, like he usually did--Cloud was almost certain he never slept a whole night through. But although Reno usually pulled Cloud away with him to take him back to his quarters, this time he whispered Rufus's name.

Rufus woke up, and his hand reached for the light, unerringly, pulled the cable and the light came on. He gripped Cloud by the nape of his neck and pulled him in for a kiss, then released him and pushed him back into the bed. "You're right, Reno. It is definitely time, isn't it?"

"Yessir, and then I can take him back to his rooms," Reno said, getting off the bed and picking up his clothes from where he'd dropped them to the floor the night before.

"Mmm..." Rufus reached for the top drawer of the nightstand, and pulled out a small, silver-foiled box, tied with an elegant, simple ribbon in the standard Shinra crimson, like the diamond in the company logo. "It isn't much, of course, but I thought it was time, and I'm much happier giving this to you now, rather than when you're in chains at my feet."

Cloud blinked at that, but took the box when Rufus offered it to him. He felt nervous, slid the ribbon off carefully. Rufus only watched him with quiet amusement. Feeling his hand tremble, he opened the box, set the top aside with the ribbon, and stared down in confusion.

It was a black ring of leather, with a silver, diamond-shaped tag dangling from one side.

"I don't think he realizes what it is, Reno."

"Awww, c'mon, don't tell me _he_ never put one on ya, not even for fun?" And Reno moved in behind him, reached around him to lift the leather ring up, and before Cloud could raise a hand to stop him he pulled the leather around his neck... and fastened it. Cloud reached up with a hand to feel at it, but the locking mechanism wasn't like a standard belt buckle, or anything so simple as that. It was small, metallic, and likely required a signal to open. Cloud looked up at Rufus, saw him staring at him, and the amusement had turned to cruel humor.

"Oh, yes, it fits perfectly. You were right, Reno. Keeping to the black leather is best."

"What...?" Cloud said, and Reno snickered, before kissing him just above the locking mechanism.

"So long as you're wearing that," the Turk explained, "we can find you. No matter where you go, no matter what's going on... we'll always be able to find you, Cloud." He leaned closer to Cloud's ear, whispered, "We'll always be able to drag you back to heel."

***

He was restricted to his room while his helm was being repaired. "Unless you're comfortable walking around with just the mask," Reno said, with that kind of tone that implied he knew Cloud probably wouldn't. It frustrated him, and now the Turks weren't even required to be on hand every minute of the day to handle him, so he was shut up in his room alone. It was surprising just how maddening it was--he'd been alone before, even preferred it, especially considering all that--all that Rufus, and the Shinra--had done to him.

Even if it was to protect the others.

One of the Turks would show up to bring his evening meal, and if it was Reno he would usually sit with him.

"Siegfried's trial is almost over," Reno said. "Just waiting on the jury of his peers to finish deliberating. Not that we don't already know what they're gonna say."

"I'm surprised Rufus didn't just shoot him upon sight," Cloud said, and Reno laughed.

"Hells no. He's going to drag him through the mud, then lynch that son of a bitch in public. You don't cross Rufus Shinra, kid. It ain't smart."

"Is that why he's so fixated on me?" Cloud asked. "Is that why... this?"

Reno snickered, then threw himself back in his chair, taking up as much space as possible with his rangy legs. "Hey, have you actually used your desk yet? I don't think I've seen you do any reports. That's gonna be problematic if you don't start writing them up, you know."

He frowned at him. "Don't--don't do that. Change the topic. If you're not allowed to tell me, then just say that."

"Not that I'm forbidden or anything," Reno said, shrugging. "More like... not sure if I should. And I am serious about the reports." He rolled his eyes. "Worst part of my whole damn day, those."

Cloud bit into a piece of toast, and went back to eating.

***

It was the next day, that Rufus actually walked through the door in the morning, with Rude. Rude just put down the tray of breakfast and left again, and Rufus made his way to one of the armchairs, grimacing as he steadied himself with the cane as he sat down.

"Colder weather always makes it worse," he muttered, then looked to Cloud. "I suppose I might as well get used to it. Have you slept well?"

"I'm restless, sir," Cloud admitted, and Rufus nodded as he set about preparing himself a cup of coffee. "And yourself?"

"Also, restless," Rufus said, grinning, then shook his head. "But that's a different matter. I take it you've gotten used to the feel of the collar?"

"Y-yes, sir."

Rufus sat back with his mug of coffee, staring at Cloud through the steam. "I do like how I can tell it's there, even with the sweater pulled over top of it. No one else would suspect, Strife, don't look so alarmed--they probably just think it's a dogtag. And it is, in a way." He sipped from the mug, then said, "Avalanche has requested to meet with Fenrir. They'd heard about you even before Valentine nudged his way into your solo mission, and they want to make sure I haven't taken on some other madman."

"The helmet... still isn't fixed, sir."

"It will be today," Rufus said. "Tell me, do they have any idea about your past, Strife?"

He was using his last name. That was usually a warning sign, but Cloud couldn't see that he was doing anything wrong, had done anything wrong, that there was anything to correct. He wondered if it was really because he hadn't been writing up a log of what he did during his day. But he couldn't let his thoughts distract him from Rufus's question for long, or else he would be in trouble.

"They... They know I was a trooper. They know the truth about what happened in Nibelheim."

"You mean, that you were a trooper who managed to throw the Great Sephiroth to his doom while your hometown burned to the ground," Rufus said, and Cloud nodded. "What about those videos we watched, Strife? Do they have any clue about those truths?"

"No, sir."

Rufus nodded, checked his watch before enjoying more of his coffee in silence. Cloud timidly set about eating his own food, some kind of rice porridge, when Rufus finally spoke again. "And what about him? About Sephiroth? Do any of them know?"

Cloud dropped his spoon into the bowl of porridge and immediately looked up, shook his head. "No, sir."

Rufus arched an eyebrow. "Not even Valentine, or the fire lion?"

"N-no, sir. Not that I... There's no way for them to know." His left hand had started to shake, and Cloud covered it with his right. "I never told them. Any of them."

"But there's some reason why you're afraid that they might know, isn't there?"

He swallowed, lowered his gaze. "I... He..."

"He fucked you even while you were with Avalanche, did he."

Cloud clamped his eyes shut. "I... don't know, sir. I don't remember... I don't remember clearly." He knew he must look desperate, but he didn't care. "And why does it matter? Avalanche doesn't know, even if they meet Fenrir, it shouldn't--it shouldn't matter."

"It matters, Strife. It matters to me." He felt the tip of the cane beneath his chin, and he looked up, as Rufus pulled it back beside himself. "But you're right. It shouldn't change how we approach Avalanche with Fenrir. And you've been with us long enough I think we can start teasing out some of your story. So here's what you know, understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good boy."

***

He wore his standard uniform, complete with helmet and mask, and waited in one of the SOLDIER briefing rooms. There was actually a window, there, and he stared outside for what felt like the first time in months, even though it hadn't been that long. There was snow out there, a thin layer of it, drifts of it falling down from the ruins above. But he could tell by the heavier coats the officers wore, and the heavier uniforms that the troopers wore, that it had gotten colder outside even for however many days they had him wait in his quarters. His sense of time still felt skewed, but he'd spent enough of his life underground or drifting in Mako--

A knock at the door and he turned around, standing at attention, feet shoulder-width apart, hands clasped behind his back. Tseng stood at the door, motioning the others in, and Cloud watched as they did, one-by-one, the entire group. Barret, Cid, Vincent, Nanaki, Tifa, and Yuffie, with Cait Sith perched on her shoulder. So he was unsurprised when Reeve stepped in, followed by Rufus.

"Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce Fenrir."

There were a couple of hesitant greetings, but Cloud could see it on their faces--they didn't like the look of him, one bit. But he had to stick to the script--the look that Rufus gave him right then said it plainly. So he saluted, until Tseng gave him permission to stand at ease, and Rufus invited them all to sit.

Gods, it was awkward.

"So... he used to be a SOLDIER?" Tifa said, watching him out of the corner of her eye, but facing Rufus.

"As far as we can tell, yes." Rufus clasped his hands in front of him, on the table, and looked to him again. "Do you remember?"

"Some... early point in the program, sir," he said, dutifully sticking to what he'd been told. "I don't remember it clearly."

"Apparently, Fenrir started to show signs of Mako poisoning shortly after his induction," Rufus said. "That was before any of us realized just how careful we had to be, inducting men into SOLDIER. Of course, at the time, my father was in control of the company, and when Fenrir's condition was brought to his attention, he thought it would be best to put him down. Hojo convinced him otherwise."

"So what happened to you?" Yuffie asked him, her own eyes wide and staring at the visible portion of the mask.

"My memories are not clear," he said. "But he put me through... extensive tests of his own. At one point he put me into a Mako chamber... and the next time I awoke, there were tremors, all around."

"We were excavating older portions of the building while constructing the complex," Rufus explained. "We found some of Hojo's abandoned labs... including the one where he'd left Fenrir here to die or mutate."

That earned more sympathetic looks from the others, though Barret, being Barret, asked point-blank, "Then why the hell dress him up in the same uniform?"

"Honestly, nothing else seemed appropriate," Rufus said with a shrug. "And Sephiroth's uniform was approved for wear by elite First Class SOLDIERs... it's just that none did, out of deference to him. And, unlike most SOLDIER uniforms, it also provides Fenrir with fuller coverage." When Yuffie opened her mouth, he intervened, "He still bears Hojo's marks."

"You have our sympathy," Nanaki said, and he only nodded in return as thanks.

Finally, Vincent spoke up, his eyes not on Rufus at all, but on Cloud. "May I ask who trained you to use the sword?"

"I followed standard instructional procedure, as did all inductees."

Now Vincent's gaze slid toward Rufus, but briefly. "So I am given to understand that Zackary Donovan had the same instructor?"

"Not the same, but the style taught would have been the same," Rufus said smoothly. "Also, I don't understand what Donovan has to do with this."

"Fenrir's sword style differs from that used by the SOLDIERs we've seen," Vincent said. "The differences are subtle, yes, but I've only seen one other man use a two-handed blade like that."

"Really?" Rufus said.

"Yes. And I believe that you were lying to me about the mask," Vincent said, looking at him, directly. "Cloud, why are you hiding from us?" There were the expected sounds of surprise from the rest of Avalanche, and even Rufus muttered a "beg your pardon?" but Vincent wasn't distracted by any of it. He just kept staring at him.

They'd expected that Vincent might guess, might even assume, but a direct question like that--it still stunned him, before he said, "I've read about him in the reports following Meteor's fall. But..." He glanced at Rufus, who still had that quizzical look down pat, but Tseng--Tseng, across the room, was giving him the warning stare instead. "...I do not know Cloud Strife."

Vincent looked at Rufus. "It's a very convincing act, of course. I'll give you that. But we'd know him anywhere."

Rufus's surprise turned to a frown. "That... is a hefty accusation you leverage against us, Valentine."

"If what you say is true, then there should be no problem removing the helm and taking off the mask for just a moment," Vincent said, and looked again at Cloud. "If you are truly so disfigured you are ashamed of it, I promise you that it will not frighten me."

"These are not the proper facilities," Cloud stated. "I will die."

"I don't believe you."

"I will die," Cloud repeated.

"Then where can it be removed?" Vincent asked, looking to Rufus.

"Unfortunately, it requires a highly controlled environment," Rufus said, still frowning, "and a trip to the science department, besides. And I believe more than one of you would prefer to avoid that, although Dr. Melantha has improved the atmosphere around there considerably."

"Then perhaps you can answer us more clearly, then," Vincent said, "and tell us what happened to Cloud's body after your men killed him."

"I told you, he was interred in the grounds of the church in Sector Five."

"Vincent..." It was Tifa, beside him, putting a hand on his arm. "Vincent, please."

"I am sorry for your loss," Cloud said, and the others turned toward him. "If you wish to fight so hard to believe he is still alive, then he must have been... very important to you." He looked to Vincent. "I'm sorry."

Vincent stared back at him, unmoving, and finally nodded. "...I understand. I retract my argument, for the time being."

"Well, now that that little spot of unpleasantness has been cleared up," Rufus said, "might I interest any of you in a light repast before you return to your homes?"

Ever the host. Cloud watched as Avalanche declined, and stood up along with everyone else as they started to file out. But there were more looks cast his way, more concerned looks, more wary looks, and after Rufus and Tseng stepped out, he was left alone.


	2. Difficult Potentials

**Difficult Potentials**

After enough time had passed he was certain that Avalanche had left the building, he left the briefing room, only to find Reno waiting for him, PHS unit in hand, tapping out a response to something. He looked up at Cloud, held up a hand to stop him from walking back to his quarters.

"...Rufus is pissed," Reno said, in a low voice. "I ain't seen him like this in a while. You were really improving his mood for a while, there, too." He shook his head, flipped his PHS unit shut and tucked it away into a pocket, before looking to Cloud. "It's Valentine. Too damn smart, and while we knew it was a risk... he must've seen something down there that gave it away."

Cloud shook his head. "N-no... I... I did every--"

"You slipped up somehow, kid," Reno said, cutting him off and glancing to make sure none of the SOLDIERs were around. "Or that's how Rufus is gonna view it, anyway." He gestured. "Come with me."

***

Reno took him through some convoluted underground passages that he knew were meant to throw off his sense of direction. He wasn't even certain how the Turk was capable of navigating them, until he noticed numbers stenciled up near the ceiling, indicating block numbers.

"You recognize this?" Reno said over his shoulder.

"No."

"This is underneath the main support. We used to run top-secret shit down here. Hojo had some floors all to his fucking self." Reno snorted. "That was a mistake. Anyway, your old homicidal boyfriend used to train down here when he was a boy, or at least Tseng says so. I believe it. Ah, here we are."

He stopped in front of a door, used an old physical key to unlock it, and shoved it open. Cloud had a feeling he knew what he'd find, and stepped inside to find himself staring at his cell.

There was no one around, no one that he could see, anyway, so he pulled off his helm, with a desperate shake of his head. "Reno... Reno, no, I don't--I didn't--"

"You think I'm going to disobey the boss?" Reno said, putting a hand on his chest and shoving him backwards, farther inside the cell. "Strip."

"What--"

"Take the uniform off, Fenrir," Reno growled. "You're still on duty. Or do I need to give ya a reminder, sweetheart?"

His eyes widened, but he shrank back, before turning away from the Turk, and stripping out of the uniform as swiftly as possible. He turned, and Reno just indicated he put it beside the door.

"Oh, yeah, and the bandage, too," Reno said. "The only thing you should have on, wolfie, is your collar."

Cloud shook his head. "N-no." Reno raised his brows, but Cloud stepped away, shaking his head. Where the tranquilizer dart came from, he wasn't certain, until he saw Tseng standing behind Reno in the doorway, lowering the trank gun. But then he couldn't breathe because Reno had dashed forward and slammed his nightstick across his chest, causing him to fall to the floor. The Turk knelt with one knee on his chest, and pulled out a knife from his pocket while his other hand grabbed Cloud's wrist and pulled it up. Cloud just shut his eyes, didn't look, didn't watch as Reno effortlessly cut through the swath of cloth, then tore it away. He stood up, making a soft sound of... of sympathy? Pity? Disappointment?

"Shit, Strife... Boss, did you know about this?" And Reno pulled his arm around, apparently showing it to Tseng.

"I did, to some extent," Tseng said. "Rufus was originally planning on letting him keep that little secret to himself, but that privilege has been revoked. Now..."

And Reno released his arm, stood up, walked back toward the door. Cloud could already feel his consciousness starting to lapse, but tried to sit up, stared at the doorway. Tseng was saying something, maybe not to him, but to Reno. Either way, he couldn't make it out. He covered his eyes with this right hand, fell back against the cold concrete floor, and heard the door slam shut as if it were a thousand miles away.

***

When the door came open again, Rufus entered like a small immaculate thunder cloud, storming right up to him and raising his rifle. The blast echoed in the room, and Cloud winced, clapped a hand over his thigh, until he felt the regenerating tissue force the bullet back out.

"I'm sorry, sir," he said, keeping his gaze down, because it would be better than seeing Rufus's expression.

"I'm tempted to have you fake death so we could dig up your fake corpse from beside the church and show that to your friends as evidence," Rufus hissed. "But that wouldn't work, because you would have decomposed more fully by now, SOLDIER enhancements or no. Now, what did you say to Valentine?"

"I didn't say anything...!" Cloud said with a shake of his head, keeping his eyes shut. He still hadn't looked at his left arm. "I followed the mission orders perfectly. He invited himself along with me—I told him not to, but he said he didn't have to follow your orders, and came with me anyway."

"Then you fought. It must have been something in the way that you fought..." Rufus's voice had a bit less of that edge to it, though it was still glacial, just like his eyes. "Or he noticed something else about you. He slept with you, didn't he? So surely he's noticed the way you move. Well, it's too late--the seed's been planted in their heads, and now they'll be looking for reasons to reveal who you are." There was the sound of cloth shifting, metal sliding against leather, and when Cloud opened his eyes he saw that Rufus had put away the rifle. "The problem with you, Strife, is that I like you the way you are. Removing those memories from your head, brainwashing you--those are all viable options, but at the same time, I don't like any of them." He stepped closer, fingers cupping Cloud's chin, raising his face up. "I like the look in your eyes, Strife, when you look at me. And our relationship is built on many memories together, even if you can't remember them all consciously."

"Memories together?" Cloud said, confused, and the corner of Rufus's mouth twitched upward before he released Cloud's chin.

"Mmm." His fingers stroked Cloud's face. "I've had a few words with our resident specialist of your... particular ailment. They're going to help you, but you must not eat or drink anything other than water for the time before your operation. So I'm afraid you'll have to stay here for a little bit longer." He grinned, his fingers sliding down and around Cloud's throat. "Consider it a reminder of who holds your leash."

"S-sir," Cloud managed, before Rufus released him. Cloud leaned back against the wall, saw Rufus still staring at him, not leaving yet, and so he asked, "What... what are you going to do to me, then?"

"Nothing too drastic, Strife," Rufus said. "You'll be who you are now, I promise you that. But that's all I'll promise you." He turned, started walking toward the door, where Tseng waited for him. "For now, you had better rest."

He swallowed. "Yes, sir." And then Rufus was gone and the door closed. The moment Cloud heard the door lock, he began to panic, but if he tried to break out--the damn collar--and then Rufus would likely do something worse--and--

***

He wasn't even aware when they came to get him. But they did get him, and they put the mask--just the mask, over his face, and then a sheet over him entirely, and they carried him off on some stretcher or gurney. He couldn't tell. His left arm hurt, and his head ached. He lost consciousness again while they were on the way.

***

There was the green, nearby. He arched back his head from the examination table, and saw a sealed Mako chamber, covered completely with a metal shield, but the green slithered out of it and into his head. Something started beeping nearby, and there was a rush of movement around the table, but he ignored it, all of it, just kept staring at the chamber. At some point a thing around his wrist snapped, and he reached for the chamber with his freed hand, and then something was placed against his neck and he lost consciousness again.

***

When he woke up, he was in the blue-green. He was in a Mako chamber, and floating in it with him was the mask. He grasped it with his hands, stared at it, and for the first time looked at his left arm.

He screamed and flung his left hand away from himself, so that it hit the wall. The glass in the chamber cracked, but there was a metal shield surrounding it, so even if he broke the glass he wouldn't get out. If he wasn't submerged in Mako he knew he'd be panting, on the verge of panicking, but then he looked at it again, held it before his face.

His skin didn't look human. The slashes of black and the veins of blue Mako beating underneath the skin looked like something that belonged on one of those Makonoid creatures. But showing clearly on the back of his hand, even surrounded by the scarred black tissue around it, was the stylized numeral for 1. It wasn't his number. It was Sephiroth's.

And the more he looked at it, at the edge of spines peeking out of his skin along his forearm, he started to realize what those uncomfortable sensations around his shoulders, his back, could mean.

Then he looked up at the glass, at the mask floating within reach, and for the first time caught a glance at his reflection... and saw the pupils of his eyes had narrowed into slits.

***

The thing... also wore the mask. It wore her mask, and it had her laugh, and it had his laugh, too. When it came after him, he couldn't fight it off. He couldn't--

***

When he awoke again, he was lying in his quarters, on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His whole body ached, and he raised his right hand to his head, massaged his temples, considered sitting up but then decided it would be better to stay down. He turned his head, looking for the usual sitting place, but no one was there, not even Reno. The door to the office area was closed.

_"They don't understand what they're doing."_

He turned his head, saw the shadow in the corner of the room, watching him with the green. "Ah...?" he managed, and he thought he saw a black-gloved hand rising, pressing a finger to thin, perfect lips.

Just then, there was a knock at the door, and he closed his eyes.

"Rise and shine, sweetheart." There was a twirl of the nightstick nearby, and Cloud opened his eyes despite himself, saw the Turk watching him from the doorway. "How ya feeling?"

"Like shit," he admitted, and Reno grinned.

"You look kinda like shit. C'mon, a shower'll make you feel better."

"As if you'd care," he grumbled, and Reno laughed and backed off, made way for him to go to the bathroom by himself. He brushed his teeth, went into the shower, rinsed away--nothing, actually, he appeared clean, but he didn't feel clean until after he'd done it himself anyway. And at least they had bothered to rebandage his arm. Then he came out, starting toward the closet and drawers to gather the pieces of his uniform.

"What did they do to me?" Cloud asked.

"Some stuff. Ain't at liberty to talk about it, as you might've guessed." Reno didn't bother to hide his admiring stare as Cloud dressed. "But I will say that you look a bit different. Not too much--ain't so big a change that other people'll flip out--though maybe they will. You make those weird eyes look so damn pretty."

And a glance at the mirror confirmed what the Turk had said. What he had hoped might be just a dream was real--his eyes shared the same slit pupils that Sephiroth had had, that all the clones had had. He swallowed, wondered at the rest, realized that he was still slim and slender, but...

"The hell...?" he muttered. "Am I taller?"

"Only a little bit. Again, we didn't want to change your appearance too drastically, and Rufus had his foot down about that from the start. Still..." Reno walked up to him, before he was finished dressing, had only pulled on his pants, when Reno held up the Jenova mask and held it over his face. Cloud started to growl at Reno to put it away, but then he saw himself in the mirror, and stopped, and stared.

…And had the sudden frightening image of six wings spreading from his back, as black as Sephiroth's had been pristine white, and--

He shoved himself away, away from the mask, from Reno's hand, and glared at him, hissed, "Put that away."

"Oh, Strife. Ain't that simple, now is it. Look how damn long your hair is, too, now."

And he did, actually did, surprised to see it falling longer than it had ever been, even when he was a boy, and longer even than his mother's. He backed away again, bumping against the bed, and Reno watched him, twirling his nightstick in one hand, holding the mask in the other.

"You're as skittish as a baby 'bo. You're still you, ain't ya?"

"Am I?" Cloud growled, and Reno laughed.

"You are. I can't give the details, but you are. Anyway, get used to the look." He tossed the mask onto Cloud's bed. "And new requirement. Up to you whether you wear the helm or not. But the mask goes on, and stays on, unless you're in the presence of the Turks or the President, only."

"Won't... won't my blond hair give me away, anyway?" Cloud asked, and Reno shook his head.

"Too long, and a few shades paler than usual, besides," Reno said. "Anyway, hope you're all caught up on your beauty rest, because we're headed out to do a thing as soon as you get the rest of your damn clothes on."

***

The thing was a special joint mission with the Turks to oust a gang of yakuza who had taken up shop in an area dangerously close to Wall Market. Given Wall Market's importance to the city, especially in its current condition, allowing the yakuza to have any kind of influence in the market--especially that much--was not to be tolerated.

So Fenrir went in first, while the Turks spotted all the possible exits and took out any who ran away.

Cloud didn't really think about it much. He knew he had a job to do, and he was doing it. The yakuza were unfortunate targets of the Shinra, and--he had no reason to defend them. Still, when he stood in the main room of their boss, surrounded by blood, limbs scattered around him, he felt more remorse. He probably hadn't needed to do it so messily...

...but then again, it needed to be a warning to others.

***

He came out of the building, watched as a follow-up crew went rushing in to perform clean-up duties, and then turned his head to see Tseng walking toward him... with Vincent right behind him.

"Your fan would like to see an example of your handiwork before we destroy it," Tseng said, as they reached Cloud. Cloud just looked up at Vincent, who met his own gaze. There was a twinge of Vincent's brow, but it smoothed over quickly enough, and the two exchanged nods before Vincent went inside. "Good to see that your downtime hasn't managed to degrade the quality of your work. We will return home now."

"Yes, sir." Cloud started to follow him as he turned to go back to the transports, but he stopped, turned around, looked up where he could have sworn he felt Vincent's eyes on him again... then, when Tseng called for Fenrir, he immediately went.

***

The ride back to base felt terribly slow. He could have made it back more quickly if he had run, but he had the feeling that he was under "probation" again, since... whatever the hell had happened. The other Turks in the truck ignored him, or appeared to, as his usual handlers were in the driver's and passenger's seats. He sat in a corner and just closed his eyes, realized he was too nervous to really feel the motion sickness.

They arrived at the transport block in the complex, and Tseng ordered all of them to report to the Turks' offices for debriefing after cleaning up. When Cloud started for his own quarters, Tseng just called for Fenrir more sharply.

"There's no need for you to go all the way back to your quarters, just to come back to our offices," Tseng said. "You will use the Turks' showers as well, this time. Reno, keep an eye on him."

"Yessir," Reno drawled, then looked at Cloud with a leer. Cloud just changed his direction, and completely ignored the stares from the employees and others, knowing that he was walking down the Shinra halls liberally covered with blood that was obviously not his own.

Oh, Rufus wanted to make a statement, all right. Cloud Strife had been known to kill, but not to take life mercilessly--even when taking down Siegfried's troops, he'd tried to end their capacity to use weapons, not kill them. But Fenrir didn't need to be nice, didn't need to be merciful. Fenrir was different from Cloud Strife, and he understood that perfectly now.

The Turks' showers adjoined the locker room, and Reno muttered something about just calling for one of the juniors to grab a spare of his from his quarters rather than wearing that "blood-soaked mess again." Cloud didn't stop him, didn't react beyond a mild blink as Reno tossed the uniform down the laundry chute, and then looked to him with a grin. "Time to take the mask off, wolfie. Gotta wash that pretty face of yours."

And he did, and then they were in the shower. He felt the redhead's hands on him, running through his hair with the shampoo bar, and, once, leaning in to run his tongue up the scar on Cloud's back. Cloud just closed his eyes and turned his face up to the spray, and heard Elena muttering something about Reno being an ass, and thought of wings opening in the light.

***

Instead of going to Rufus's quarters, Reno escorted him back to his own, that evening, and made him sit down at his desk and walkthrough the procedure of filing a report. "Ain't like they're expecting an hourly recounting of your day, but try to keep everything in. Tseng and Rufus want it to help measure... stuff."

"Stuff?" Cloud said, looking up at Reno, and blinked when Reno planted a quick kiss on his lips, then grinned at him.

"Yeah. Stuff. Now go ahead and type one up. We've got another hour before dinner."

"Rufus...?" Cloud started, and Reno flung himself down in one of the comfortable armchairs.

"Yep. We're doing it differently tonight. He wanted to dine with ya here."

And so Cloud stared down at the embedded computer terminal in his desk, raised of course at an angle for comfortable viewing, and used the keyboard and mouse in the alcove beneath to bring up the program that Reno had shown him. It was comfortably mind-numbing, actually, and he finished and filed the report just as the door came open and some junior Turks arrived with the food trays. They left, and Cloud stood up, went around the desk, and stared at them blankly, before the door opened again and Rufus entered, closing his PHS unit.

"Well, that was a productive mission," Rufus said. "And the good news is that Valentine hasn't uttered a single word of his suspicions since the last time he saw you. I don't believe that he's given up, but your display of brute force seems to have... struck a nerve, somehow."

Cloud blinked, as the last time he'd seen Rufus, he wasn't in nearly so good a mood. "Ah... Thank you?"

He laughed, walking straight up to Cloud and running his hand through his hair. "Mmm. It looks surprisingly good on you. Makes the spikes less obvious... but doesn't remove them all completely, which is good, because it's one of those things that's so charming about you. Now..."

"Ooh, hey, boss, this is the good stuff!" Reno said from behind Rufus, and he turned, looking with amusement at his ace Turk, who had lifted up one of the tray covers.

"Indeed it is, and Cloud is going to serve it to us before he gets any himself," Rufus said, and let Cloud go, patting his butt to send him toward the coffee table.

Dinner included some kind of roast that looked like it fell right off the bone and would somehow melt in one's mouth, and a fine collection of vegetables, and small bowls of the dragon stew, which apparently Rufus had taken a liking to. There was another tray, a smaller one, but when he reached for its cover Reno tapped his hand as a warning, and he immediately drew back. Once he was done arranging their dishes, he sat back on the floor, and tried not to stare, but kept his gaze forward.

"Hmm, I think this is a good enough amount for you, Cloud," Rufus said, and handed Cloud his plate, containing his leftovers. Cloud was silently grateful he'd put extra-large servings on Rufus's plate, and murmured a thanks. "What was that? I couldn't hear you."

"Thank you, sir," Cloud repeated, and looked at Rufus hotly.

"Ah, there you are. Well, finish up, and we can proceed to dessert."

***

Dessert was ice cream. Ice cream that he was being fed, with his eyes closed, no hands allowed, but it still wasn't as humiliating as the damn berries had been... until at one point he opened his mouth to accept another spoonful and he encountered the textured skin of a strawberry, with the ice cream on it.

"Hurry now, don't let it drip," Rufus said, and Cloud leaned forward to take it, certain that it was Reno's hand feeding him. The Turk dragged the bitten end of the fruit across his lips, across his cheek, trailing a faint line of cream. "Ah, well, that's not going to do, is it? If you're going to be so messy, you'll need to be naked. Now sit still, Reno will assist you. And eyes closed."

"...Yes, sir." And it was hard to let it out, but he knew that if he didn't, Reno's hands on him would be worse than they were already. It was hard to ignore the ways Reno would drag his nails down his skin, sometimes cup him and grope him, linger on him a little longer than necessary. He followed directions, sat up, raised one knee and then the other so the pants and underwear could come off. The room was cooler than he remembered, or perhaps it was just his skin heated from embarrassment, which was ridiculous because he ought to be used to Rufus and Reno doing these kinds of things to him.

"Ah, but that extra time to take the uniform off has allowed the cream to melt. Guess we'll just have to be more careful, hm?"

"Yes, sir."

If the strawberries weren't bad enough, the next was a godsdamned banana.

***

By the time they were done, he had juices and trails of cream all down his face and his front. He heard things being moved off from the coffee table before someone's arms--he'd wager Rufus—came beneath his armpits and lifted him up.

"Turn around," Rufus commanded, quietly. "Good. One step back... good, stop there. Now, sit. Keep your eyes closed, wolf."

And Cloud knew what was coming, especially when he felt the cold glass of the coffee table beneath him. And he was pushed back so he was lying down across the table, with the office's light directly over him, a source of heat while everything else felt cold.

"Dessert's looking pretty damned good," Reno observed.

"Do you spend all day trying to find ways to humiliate me?" Cloud growled, and Rufus laughed, from very close, so he wasn't surprised when Rufus kissed him. And he shuddered, because Rufus nipped at his lower lip, demanded entrance, and there was a heady, spicy flavor on his tongue, which he realized must have been the drink of the evening. Then Rufus trailed his tongue across Cloud's cheek, licking up the trail of cream, and nipped lightly at his skin there before Cloud felt another tongue--Reno--circling around the berry juice and cream he had lovingly smeared all around his nipple earlier.

And that wasn't the end of it. He felt their mouths on him, their tongues on him, their teeth on him when they occasionally just bit right into him, and he tried his hardest not to cry out, not to move, not to give in to their expectations. But then one of them covered his groin with a hot, wet mouth, and his treacherous body responded with a shudder down his spine and jolt of his cock.

"Now, Cloud," said Rufus's voice, nearby his head, "spread your legs."

"Y-yes, sir." And he did, felt them hang over the sides of the coffee table at the knees.

"Touch yourself for me, again, just like you did that one time."

"Am I supposed to look at you, this time?" he asked, and Rufus chuckled.

"No. Keep your eyes closed. And tell me what you're thinking about. Be honest."

"I... I'm not really thinking of anything," he said, reaching down. He knew better than to do it with his left, even though that still felt more natural to him than his right, at least when it came down to this, to touching himself. A hand descended into his hair, stroking the long strands.

"Really, Strife? That's terribly disappointing if this is just a mechanical thing you do."

"No, no sir, I... I just..."

"You don't want to tell us, do you?"

"Well, right now, I can't--think--of--"

Another stroke in his hair, in time to the stroke of his fingers on his cock. "Tell me. I won't punish you, even if it's not me."

His eyes were already closed but he squeezed them tighter shut, now, whimpered, but Rufus's hand tightened in his hair and... "It's night," he said, quickly, and Rufus's hand went back to stroking his hair. "It's n-night, and I'm... I'm usually alone. And I don't... don't tend to think of it, I just... reach down with my hand, the left one, with the glove still on, because... the feel of the leather, against me, and the smell of it... it's..." He trailed off, shook his head, gasped, and felt Reno's mouth on his nipple again, sucking on it. "It..."

"How does it make you feel?"

"M-makes me feel... warm, warm, even when I'm cold, even when I'm alone," Cloud breathed, felt someone's finger swirling around his other nipple, stroking it, playing with the sensitive bud. "And..."

"It's not just those things, is it? You start to see someone, don't you?"

He nodded, biting his lower lip.

"Who do you see?" It's a whisper, and worse yet he can't read the tone behind it, whether it's a warning or a promise or both.

"I see him..."

"Who?"

"S-Sephiroth...!" And he felt a tongue slide up along the hand on his cock. "He... He's over me, caging me, I can't move, not really, only closer, closer to him--"

"And do you want to? Even after he murdered your flower girl, did you want to move closer to him?"

"Nn..." He tried to let his answer remain ambiguous, but then he felt a scrape of teeth against his length. "Yes!" he cried out. "I--even then--every time, I--he--his hand, and his--his mouth--and--his leather--"

"Would you think of him just touching you?"

"S-sometimes, I'd... he'd... in me..."

"He'd what, Strife?"

"He'd fuck me! He'd fuck me and I--I'd--" He couldn't finish, crying out as he came, and the mouth that had been so close went over his cock, sucking, and he put his hands over his face, groaning, "Stop…!"

And when he managed to open his eyes, he saw Reno smirking at him, a light trail sliding down his chin. "Hope you're still feeling hot, because we're not done with you yet."

***

After, they were lying in the bed, Cloud panting still from the exertion. Rufus was sipping from a glass of chilled water, and Reno was lying down nuzzling Cloud's shoulder and nibbling at him, occasionally nipping him. Cloud just stared up at the ceiling, and squeaked when he felt some cold water drip on him, earning a soft laugh. Cloud looked up at Rufus, then, frowned.

"You know... I kinda like you, when you're not... not being a total bastard," Cloud said, which made Reno bury a snicker against his shoulder.

"Actually, I was conceived within wedlock, which is potentially more than I can say about you," Rufus said, taking a sip of water again, and then held it down, offering it to Cloud. "Ah, no reaction from that one? I thought for sure it would draw one out of you."

Cloud shook his head. "Why should it? ...I already got beat up for that already when I was a kid. Besides, it's not like the Shinra would have paid attention to... why are you grinning like that stop it."

"Hmm." Rufus watched as Cloud sat up, well enough to take the glass and sip it, murmuring a thank you before giving it up. Rufus set the glass back on the nightstand and propped himself on his elbow, waited for Reno to get settled against Cloud's shoulder again before reaching with his other hand to stroke the long, golden hair. "You have some interesting ideas of what the Shinra paid attention to. Also, I'm intrigued by what you remember and what you don't. Either the Mako really had its way with you--understandable, considering--or your ability to selectively remember things cannot be matched by anyone else I know."

Cloud frowned up at him. "...I remember enough, don't I?"

"Do you? I wonder." Rufus kept petting his hair, watching Cloud's eyes grow heavier, before his fingers slid down to stroke Cloud's face. "So, do you remember me at all?"

"From... From back then?" Cloud asked, and Rufus nodded.

"If you want to see it that way, then yes. From 'back then.' As if it's in a storybook, rather than actual history."

His frown deepened. "That's not what I meant."

"You should answer my question, wolf," Rufus said, but he still looked amused, and ran his thumb over Cloud's lips, looking even more pleased when Cloud opened his mouth, let his tongue come out and circle it. But Rufus didn't take the bait, didn't slide his thumb inside Cloud's mouth, only pulled it away and went back to stroking his face.

"Hmm? I... I don't think so." Cloud's brow furrowed as he considered it, only smoothed out when Rufus's hand swept across his brow. "Should I? I... I remember seeing you at the top of the Shinra Building, two years and some months ago... however the hell long it's been."

"Ah." Rufus went back to stroking his hair. "You don't remember, then. Pity." Cloud made a soft, distressed sound, and Rufus chuckled, leaned down to kiss his forehead. "It's fine, wolf. Even if you don't remember, I do... and I have the records to back it up."

Cloud shook his head. "But... but what am I supposed to remember? I met you? I don't..."

"It's not for now, anyway, Cloud," Rufus said, gaze growing distant, before he sighed and turned out the light on the nightstand. Cloud made another confused sound as Rufus settled down on the bed beside him, and pulled Cloud up against his side, apparently having no problem with Reno spooning against Cloud's back. "...what? I'm not going back to my quarters now."

"Oh," Cloud said, and closed his eyes so the light of the Mako glow wouldn't disturb the others. "S-sorry. Just wasn't expecting it."

"I like to keep you on your toes. Haven't you figured that out by now?"

***

The Behemoth screamed before Cloud slit its throat so it couldn't roar again. He jumped back as the beast fell, thrashing about, then turned to block the strike from a second one. A whirl of the blade and he moved in, stabbing it in the ribcage before it hit him with one of its massive paws, slinging him back into one of the reactor pipes. With a low growl he pushed himself up, charged at it again, struck it across the face, then jumped up to plunge the sword into its spine. He jumped back off the beast, slung his sword to free it from blood, and then raised the communicator.

"Fenrir reporting. Last of the nest has been destroyed. Reactor ruins now clear."

"Good work. Stop by the control center on your way out, make sure there's nothing untoward going on."

"Yes, sir."

He slipped it back into a clip at his belt, and began jumping up and away from the pit of Mako, back up to the scaffolding and ladders that led to the main floor. At one point he misjudged the strength of one of the metal structures and it began to break under his weight--he flung a hand out and grabbed a cable, grunting as the cable caught but held him, and the metal tumbled down below. Just looking down at the pit of Mako was dangerous, because he hung there for several moments, and debated just letting go.

Why not, after all? It didn't appear likely that Rufus was ever going to let him go, and his presence seemed to cause more trouble than help...

"Fenrir?" A voice cut on from the communicator, and he reached with his free hand, pulled it up to the mask.

"Here."

"We need you in Sector Two, at the junction of the wall and the plate ruins."

"The reactor control center?"

"Look at it quickly, but don't waste time. We need you now."

"Yes, sir."

He tilted his head back, clipped the communicator back at his belt, began climbing up the cable until he could reach a ledge.

***

The explosion was rather impressive, even for him, but he ignored it, just put the sword to his back and walked back to where the Shinra forces had been holding a defensive line. Some idiot relative of Siegfried's had found a Proud Clad Mk. II model, completed it, and decided that destroying the city was an excellent way of capturing the people's approval.

Reno was smoking a cigarette, watched as he strode up to them, saluted.

"Mission objective completed."

"Hell yeah, that's one completed son of a bitch," Reno said with a grin, jamming his hands into his pockets. Tseng was elsewhere, already splitting the troops into squads, to secure and salvage what pieces they could, which ones should go back to their stations. Cloud ignored it, and just looked back where the crimson ball of flame had receded, though it had sent a rather magnificent plume of black clouds upward, toward the plate ruins. "All right, let's get you back home, huh? Hey boss!"

Cloud ignored him as he went to Tseng, only kept watching the smoke. He startled when Reno came back, slapping him across the shoulders.

***

It was the busiest report he'd written in a while, but he frowned at it. That was the third monster nest he'd had to clear out from the reactors since he'd woken up again, and that was causing problems with the converted reactors--hard to generate energy when monsters were spilling out from your innards and taking down the reactor crews. He wondered if Rufus and Reeve had come up with a way to prevent that, but unless they could fill in the Mako wells they had dug for the original reactors, they'd have to--do something. Put down metal shields to prevent monsters from nesting in the old reactor remains...

He frowned at it some more, then sent it off, leaned back in the chair and looked up at the ceiling.

"Is this how it felt?" he asked. "Before Zack? Before me? You'd just... do what they told you, and write your reports, and that was it?"

 _"It was lonely."_ And he closed his eyes, felt the green winding around him again. _"But I worked to continually improve myself."_

"No distractions from specialized training, huh?" he said, and felt it sliding down his hair, stroking it. "Or books. I could use some more books. I hear a lot of them got used for kindling after Meteor fell, before the city got itself together again."

 _"Hmm..."_ And the voice was quiet, thoughtful, and he felt a black-gloved hand stroke his chest, knowingly, lovingly, over the scar--

And a knock at the door caused him to lean forward again, one hand reaching for the mask in case he needed it. It was rare anyone other than Rufus or the Turks came to the door, but sometimes department heads or one of the SOLDIERs would. At least he was approachable?

And so he was surprised when Melantha opened the door, because she had never come to the room, and he had the mask over his face in the moment it took for her to step in.

"Fenrir?" she said, blinking at him. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes. Just... rules that I have to follow."

"Ah, yes. I know what you mean. May I come in?"

"Yes."

"Thank you." And she walked up to the desk, and sat down in one of the chairs in front of it, slightly to an angle. She looked a little different, though just what it was, Cloud couldn't pinpoint. "...You missed your appointment yesterday."

"I was... not aware of it. My apologies."

"I don't believe I need to stress just how important it is that you keep your appointments," Melantha said. "I've made an appointment for you tomorrow morning. Will you come by then?"

"Of course."

"Good. Thank you, Fenrir."

"You're welcome." And out of habit, he stood up when she stood, and nodded to her as she turned to leave. Something strange had just happened, and he wasn't certain what.

***

Rufus seemed content to let him never have any idea when he was going to have a nightly visit. Cloud noticed that they must have progressed into "potentially scandalous affair" mode because the times that they did visit, recently, either he or Rufus stayed the whole night.

But that meant the entire evening before his appointment with Melantha, Cloud had no clue what was going on, and sitting in the bath thinking about it didn't really help. Had he missed an appointment? He thought he'd been doing a good job keeping up with them, and getting his shots, whatever they were.

He started to get out of the tub, only to hear a whistle from the doorway, and without even looking he flung a wet washcloth at Reno's face. The Turk took it straight on, and pulled it away with a laugh.

"How long you been sittin' there? Are your fingers all wrinkly?"

"Shut up, Reno," Cloud muttered, pulling down his usual towel and catching the washcloth when Reno flung it back at him, so he could hang it properly over the stall to dry. "How long have you been sitting around?"

"Not that long," Reno said, despicably cheerful.

"Are you summoning me for a second dinner? Or dessert?" Cloud spat that last word out, which just made Reno's grin stretch wider.

"Nope! Rufus is too busy with paperwork and plans tonight. But I am going to let you in on a little secret."

"Can't be too much of one if you're willing to tell me about it," Cloud said, and Reno walked up to him, grabbed the towel and started drying him off.

"No, no, I promise, it's nice... for you, anyway." And Reno beamed at him, and it was one of those rare, honest smiles from the Turk that made Cloud stop whatever he was doing. "You're getting sent on a mission outside of Midgar!"

He blinked. "I... thought I couldn't leave the city."

"Not without preparation, but if we get things set up, then yeah, you can," Reno said, wrapping the towel around his long hair and gently wringing it out. "Of course, means ya gotta be extra diligent, yourself, because if ya don't follow the guidelines... well. Gonna be interesting."

"Interesting's not the word I'd use to describe it..." But he took the towel back from Reno, ran it down his body one more time, and then hung it up, before reaching for his robe. It was a thin thing, made out of dark, silvery material, which looked like it'd be more fitting for a woman, but it was soft, and smooth, and it wasn't like he'd been wearing much to bed these days, anyway. "Can you tell me where?"

"Not until the official briefing, nah." Reno followed him out into the bedroom, hands in his pockets again. "But I thought you might be excited about it. You are, aren't ya?"

"I think so." Cloud pulled down the duvet and sheets on his bed, put the robe aside and slid in. "Let's just say... that last time... left quite the impression on me."

"Yeah, but you just keep doing as you're doing, and you'll be fine," Reno said, reaching down and ruffling his damp hair. Cloud swatted his hand away, and Reno just grinned back at him. "All right then, sweetheart, I'll let you get your beauty sleep."

Cloud watched as Reno went away, and the lights went out after a period of time without walking, and there was only the lamp on the nightstand. He reached up to turn it off, and the room went dark, except for the slight glow of the clock and the glow from his own eyes. He shut his eyes, rolled onto his side, and tried to sleep.

***

Melantha did the usual stuff, which didn't bother him so long as he didn't pay any attention to it, just like every time before. Still, something that she was doing pinged him as different, and he turned his head to see her preparing a second vial of fluid for injection.

"Doctor...?" he started, uncertainly, and she looked over at him.

"This is to help you on your upcoming mission. I heard it was supposed to be away from Midgar."

"So you are the doctor who knows?" he said, and she tilted her head with some confusion. "What they've done to me. What's going on."

"I was given labeled bottles and a sheet of instructions for how to prepare the mixture," Melantha said, "and the labels were simply letters, nothing to give away what, precisely, this is."

He felt an edge of panic coming on, and took a deep breath to try to calm himself. "How... can you be okay, injecting me with that, when you don't know what it is?"

"S--Fenrir, I'm sorry," Melantha said, putting the needle down and walking over to him, hands clearly at her sides. He wondered if she had seen the videos, the way she was doing her best to appear non-threatening. "I... have some ideas. I've been doing my own investigations. After all, every one of these can be broken down into their base chemicals... and every one will interact differently to certain tests." She hesitated, then reached up and touched the mask over his face, turning his head to look at her, and her voice grew quiet. "Why do you think they've given you this mask to wear, when any other one would do?"

"Emotional manipulation," Cloud said.

"That does factor into it, I'm sure, but..." She glanced away, then said, "I think it has to do with--"

"Aaaaaand that's as far as you need to go, doc," Reno said, suddenly stepping into the office. Melantha looked at him, surprised, and he grinned at both of them. "What, you didn't honestly think we'd have you treating our top secret special operative without bugging the place, do you? We've heard everything."

"Everything?" Melantha said, her skin paling, and Reno's grin turned into a sneer.

"Everything, doc. Now be good and give Fenrir his rabies shot." Reno looked over at Cloud, walked beside the examination table. "And you're gonna let her give it to ya, aren't you, wolfie?"

He glared at the Turk, knowing that it would carry through the mask to him. "...Yes, sir," he ground out.

"You just keep your attention on me, that's right," Reno said, reaching with a hand and gripping the hair at the nape of his neck. "That's right, wolf... you even glare so godsdamned pretty..." There was movement, elsewhere, but Cloud did glare back at Reno, concentrated on him, even when he felt the needle slide into his arm. He didn't realize he whined a bit at the pain, but Reno leaned in close to his ear and whispered. "You know I'm gonna like it when you're glaring at me and I'm fucking you, don't you? And you're gonna like it, too--I won't let anything hold me in check, and we can fuck as hard as you want, like you want to, and ain't nothing gonna stop us..."

"R-Reno," he breathed, and heard the Turk chuckle into his ear before stepping back.

"All done, doc?" he asked, and she nodded, not looking him in the face. "Thatta girl. Okay, Fenrir, it's time to get briefed. And doc, expect a visit from Tseng, later."

"...she won't be harmed, will she?" Cloud asked, refusing to get off the exam table. Reno gave him a look, and he shook his head. "It's my fault. I asked her to look into it."

"We know. Now come on, and don't make me say it again."

"...Yes, sir." He slid off the table, and walked behind Reno, biting his lip to keep from asking for reassurance. It would be a bad idea, anyway--Reno would try to hold it over his head later, he was sure.

They finally made it back to one of the SOLDIER briefing rooms, and when they entered he was surprised to see one of the older generals--one that he remembered from his time in the SOLDIER candidate process--standing there, along with Rufus.

"General Kado," he said, without thinking, and to recover went straight into a salute. "President. Reporting for briefing, sir."

"I've heard about you, but I didn't think you would have heard about me," Kado said with a chuckle, and looked to Rufus. "Apparently he's so surprised he forgot to address his superior's superior, first."

But Rufus didn't seem put off by it at all, which made him breathe a sigh of relief, and the man waved a hand dismissively. "At ease. Reno, stay outside for now, hm?"

"Yessir."

The door closed behind the Turk, and Cloud took a seat on Rufus's other side, opposite of General Kado. There was a map laid out in front of them, and Cloud blinked when he recognized the landscape...

"We have the unfortunate problem of a band of rebels that have found and taken up one of Shinra's old facilities," Rufus said, tapping at the collection of red squares at the center of the map. "They're located between Costa del Sol and Rocket Town, as you can see, along the coastline--one of our supply posts. Basically, either town is ripe for attack if they get their feet under them." He looked up at Cloud, nodded, his usual smugness not showing at all. "You need to prevent them from doing so."

"Yes, sir," Cloud said, and returned to looking at the map. "What other information do we have about them?"

***

Preparations or no, he could still tell when they got further away from Midgar... but unlike before, when his body rebelled and redirected him back to the city, he just felt himself growing... distant. A bit numb, almost.

Reno was escorting him; Rude was serving as main transportation pilot. They went to Junon, to Costa del Sol, and from there got into a truck, driving toward the rebel base. Cloud honestly didn't remember most of the trip, he was so heavily sedated the entire time. He thought he remembered them constantly carrying something along with them, though, something in a special storage crate. Small enough for Rude to carry under one arm, big enough to require both hands whenever Reno held it. He never even thought to ask what was in it, because everything was so distant, and foggy.

At some point, though, the truck rumbled to a stop, and Reno shook him awake.

"Hey, c'mon, Fenrir. We're at our landing position."

"Hnn?" He couldn't even manage words, and Reno had to support him as he stumbled out of the truck and onto the ground. What he wasn't braced for was all the snow, all the cold, and it was only then that it hit him that Reno and Rude were both wearing heavy winter coats. They were hidden by the cover of trees, so while Rude set up camp Reno carried Cloud out of the trees, to a cliff overlooking the area below with the old Shinra base.

And there it was, laid out precisely as it was on the map, and there were lights moving between the buildings--the rebels scurrying around. He stared down at it, and eventually nodded to Reno, who then took him back through the snow and trees to the camp. They were setting it up using the truck as a natural windbreaker, and the tent was built to be pitched against it easily. A tarp was rolled out on top of the snow to keep them from getting wet, and then another tarp was put down for good measure. Sleeping bags were rolled out, rations were doled out, and Cloud found himself lying in a sleeping bag with Reno, staring up at the ceiling canvas.

"I... I can't fight like this," he managed, struggling to get the words out, and Reno watched him with that little grin of his, the one that seemed a bit tired or strained or… something. Cloud wasn't really sure.

"Don't worry. We'll put you on a different medicine tomorrow."

"But... I feel strange. Everything's... so far... away."

"That'll be the drugs. Really, don't worry about it."

"Hnn." He turned his head to the side, where Rude was tapping out an update of their status to command back in Midgar. "R-Rude?" He waited until the tapping stopping and the shades turned in his direction. "How is... Tifa? She all... all right?"

Rude stared at him for the longest time, silently, as if considering something. He looked to Reno, who shrugged, then grunted. "She's fine."

"Good..." Cloud went back to staring up at the ceiling.

"What the hell made you think of that, now, kid?" Reno asked, propping himself up to look down at him. Cloud just shook his head.

"Been worried... about them, and I..." He turned onto his side, curled up against Reno. "I... I'm sorry, I..."

"Eh, they're your friends. And even if they think you're dead, they're still important to ya." Reno wrapped his arms around him, pulled him close and zipped up the sleeping bag the rest of the way. "Can't imagine how I'd handle it if something happened to Rude." Rude grunted, again, and Reno snickered before kissing the top of Cloud's head. "I mean, I'm sure I'd get over it, but if something happened to him, or y'know, the Turks generally... There'd be hell to pay. And you do know that Rufus didn't want to fight them, after Meteor, right? He could piece together what had happened, at least somewhat, and what he didn't know he figured he could find out by asking. So he did."

"Then... why... this?"

Reno just kept holding him close, stroking his hair. "That's for Rufus to say. You know that."

"Hnn..." But he couldn't keep up the conversation, and felt his eyes closing, but before he slipped completely into unconsciousness he saw familiar black boots, the familiar hem of a black coat, just to his side...

***

He woke up the next morning to another shot in his arm, and he cried out, before lashing out with his arm--only to be stopped by Rude's hand, circling his wrist--or somewhat stopped, as he really just slowed it down until Cloud realized what he was doing. Reno pulled back, tucking a needle gun out of the way, and Cloud glared at him, before Reno held out his mask.

"Go get 'em, Fenrir," Reno said, baring his teeth, and with a snarl Cloud snatched the mask, set it to his face, and dashed out the tent. He wasn't even conscious of grabbing his sword on his way out the tent; he just took off running, straight for the cliff face.

The drop really wasn't that far, not down to the flat area that housed the old Shinra base. He didn't even remember what happened next, didn't actually think about it, but when he actually regained some consciousness he was standing at the crumbled wall of the base while a quake spell he had cast caused the main building to shudder and sink down into the earth. The other buildings were on fire--old security robots that had been repurposed lay in pieces all around him--and then there were the bodies.

"Good job, wolfie."

The voice caused his head to snap around, and before he realized what he was doing he was running toward the two Turks, and was in mid-leap when he heard Reno curse and saw the needle gun come out and--

There was a shot, and he felt the needle, and then he collided into Reno, sending them both sprawling into the snow. Within a second Rude had pried him off of Reno, and held his hands behind his back. He was growing weaker again, and he struggled, trying to turn to snap at Rude, how dare he try to hold him, and Reno sat up, rubbing at his jaw.

"Shit, kid." He stood up, dusting the snow off of his pants and muttering about wetspots, before walking up to Cloud and frowning at him. "...stronger reaction than we were expecting. You in there, Fenrir?" Cloud only growled at him, and Reno exchanged a glance with Rude before reaching and grabbing Cloud by the hair. "Fenrir? Fen--ah, hell." And before Cloud could snap at his neck--though the mask would have made it difficult for him to actually connect--Reno moved in, whispered into his ear, and bit at his neck, before pushing his body completely against him. Cloud moaned, shuddered, and rocked back, before Rude interrupted.

"If you're going to do that to calm him down, I'm letting him go first."

Reno looked back up at his partner, laughed. "No, no, you're right. But you're feeling better now, aren't ya, wolfie?"

Cloud shivered again, looked at him. "R-Reno? ...what... what the hell? I..."

"You didn't burn through the hyper as quickly as we expected," Reno said, shrugging. "But we're done here."

"We... are? But I..." But Cloud was let go by Rude, and he turned around, looked toward the ruins of the base. "Oh..."

"Yeah, you're a little hurricane sometimes. Welp, let's get back to camp, report back in, and then get ourselves back to Midgar. They'll probably send a group out from Costa del Sol to salvage what they can from here."

***

He was more conscious during the trip back, which he appreciated in theory and hated in practice. Apparently the hyper they had given him was made especially for him, too, and they had to let his body finish burning through all of it--all of it--before they could administer anything else. Including medicines that kept him from getting motion sick. Or medicines that stopped... those feelings, whatever they were, from happening.

"Yeah, you just sit right here," Reno said, consolingly, while they were on the boat from Costa del Sol to Junon. Cloud was sitting, in a corner of one of the cabins, with the strange storage crate beside him. "Probably by the time we get to Junon and hop on the military train back to Midgar, we can give you one of your usuals."

"Hnngh."

And that was about as vocal as he could get, before he had to reach for the cabin's bin and retch. Reno held his hair back for him and patted his back, and Cloud sat curled up in a corner and felt miserable the whole time.

***

Even Turks had to sleep, though, and once they were on the train to Midgar, both Reno and Rude slipped off into a doze. Cloud could see the red-head sprawled out on the seat across from him--Rude was outside their cabin, leaning on the door, so he'd wake up if it opened for sure. Then there was the storage crate, that had come with them this whole time, and that was important to keep around him.

Which obviously meant it had something to do with what they had done to him.

He hefted it up, realized it would fit under his arm easily enough. It was full of Mako, and something else--he could tell, just from touching it, the Mako thrummed beneath the surface, eager to get out. He nodded, and, slowly, as quietly as he could, he opened the window. The snow here was pretty high--the train would have been in more trouble if the tracks weren't periodically heated. He gauged his chances, finally decided this was worth wearing his helm for, and then jumped out the window.

The train was still going quickly enough that he grunted as he hit the snow and rolled, cradling the crate in his arms as he went so it wouldn't be damaged by the fall. Once he stopped rolling, he was up on his feet, and running. The ground between Midgar and Junon was bare, and flat until it reached the ocean and the mountain range that separated the two, so he knew he wouldn't be able to hide. He only had a bit of time. So, knowing that his time away was limited, he made for the only stand of trees he could see.

The snow slowed him down, but he got to the trees and ducked beneath their branches, heavy with snow, and looked behind him. No obvious sign of pursuit yet. So he looked at the trees around him, looked at the relatively clear ground beneath, felt it to measure how hard the earth was. With all the cold, it was pretty damn hard, hard enough for what he wanted to do. With a murmured apology to all the life around him, he raised the crate over his head and then slammed it against the ground.

The Mako inside scattered as the crate burst, like a trapped creature breaking free of its cage, which it was, really. He watched as it rose up and then dove downward, through the snow and into the Planet, without leaving a trace. Which left the shattered remains of the crate, and what else had been inside.

He knelt down beside it, feeling something welling up inside him, and he wasn't certain what the feeling was, couldn't identify it. He lifted up the beautiful, pristine white pinion feathers, tipped with the edge of purple that he remembered so clearly pushing aside the golden clouds surrounding them, and he started laughing.

***

He pulled the helmet and the mask off his head, dropped them to the ground and had to sit down, he was laughing so hard. He was laughing so hard, and dammit if the feathers weren't smug, somehow, and he held them close as he covered his mouth with his other hand and tried to stifle it. But he couldn't, it was just... so damned obvious, and he had missed it because he hadn't thought that they would ever--that they could--

His laughter died in his throat as he opened his eyes, immediately felt he wasn't alone. He arched his head back, and saw the familiar black boots, the hem of the long coat, and his eyes traveled upward until they met the green.

_"Do you want wings of your own?"_

The green slithered inside of him, and he licked his lips, unable to tear his eyes away. "I don't want... to lose myself."

That smile, that smile he would remember, always. _"You won't. I love you too much to let you erode away."_

And Cloud felt himself relax, then, settled against the cold ground and just stared up at him, up into the green. "I just want you," he murmured, and his eyes began to burn, but he ignored it, ignored it even when the tears started to fall. "I've only ever wanted you."

 _"Ah. Won't that upset your current handler?"_ The sneer was evident in the voice, and Cloud's brow furrowed.

"I don't even know why... why he wants..."

 _"Because he's jealous, because he finds power beautiful, because..."_ The voice trailed off, and Cloud watched as he knelt down beside him, felt the black-gloved hand wipe the tears from his cheeks. _"Because he was denied something, and he has never been good at dealing with rejection. Not of that sort."_

Cloud didn't let his eyes stray, only leaned into the touch when the hand cupped his cheek. "I don't... understand it."

 _"Ask him. Ask him about Plan Dea."_ The smile again, with a touch of cruelty in it. _"He won't like it."_

"Sounds dangerous to ask, then," Cloud said. "He's already got a damn collar on me, already... already made it so I can't leave Midgar..."

 _"As if you'd let any leash hold you..."_ And the voice was smug again. _"My puppet, my strings only hold you because you want them to."_ Something changed, then, and Cloud wasn't certain what, but there was an edge to the voice, to the smile. _"Let me fill the hole in your heart..."_

"Yes," Cloud breathed, and opened up his arms and closed his eyes. He heard the beating of wings, strong and powerful and graceful, and then he heard the sound of vehicles moving across the snow, directly toward the stand of trees. He rolled over so he could reach the mask, put it to his face. The feathers were gone from view, but they weren't gone. He knew that.

***

"What the fuck, Str--Fenrir!" Reno shouted, and it echoed in the strange snowy canopy the trees had made. It was just him and Rude under the trees with him, but he knew there were troopers outside. Cloud just kept sitting against the tree where Reno had picked him up and shoved him, and looked up at him through the mask. "Why the--where'd it go?"

"Where'd what go, Turk?" he said, and Reno turned a full glare onto him, slid his nightstick free.

"You know what the hell I'm talking about, Fenrir," Reno growled, and pointed down to the remains of the crate. "Tell me. Where. Did. It. Go."

He looked over at the remains of the crate, then back up at Reno. "The Mako that was inside? Went back to the Planet."

"Godsdammit--" And the nightstick came up, and then came down, and Cloud reached up with a hand, grabbed it, stopped it before it could touch him. He just stared coolly up at Reno and his fiery anger, and the Turk spat out, "You know what else I'm talking about. You have to know, now. So what happened."

"Honestly?" And only when he felt the pressure ease up did he release the nightstick. "I don't know. I went unconscious shortly after I broke it. When I woke up... it was gone. Whatever it was."

"He's not telling the truth, but he's not lying, either," Rude said, and Reno nodded, paced back and forth.

"Is this your idea of getting back at us, kid?" Reno snarled. "You knew you'd get caught--the collar led us straight to you--so why the hell did you even do it?"

"You wouldn't let me do it in front of you," Cloud said. "And I wanted to know why I wasn't... sick like I was the last time I was out of Midgar."

"Yeah, well, that'll probably be changing real soon, without that. Shit." The redhead turned away, spat into the snow, pulled out his PHS. "Boss? Yeah, the train's been delayed a bit longer. We found 'em, and the godsdamned box is open, and he claims he doesn't know where the godsdamned motherfuckin' contents went. Yeah, Rude was listening, he said that he wasn't lying, wasn't telling the truth, either. Yeah...?" Reno fell quiet then, listening. Cloud could hear Rufus's voice from the other side of the line, but he didn't hear it raised in anger... which was honestly more problematic than if he did hear it raised in anger, because it was when Rufus was so cold that he was especially dangerous. But he couldn't hear his voice well enough to know.

"Back soon?" Cloud asked, looking up at Rude. "It's starting again… head's already hurting."

Rude frowned down at him, then nodded. "Get up."

He nodded back, stood up as well as he was able, but Rude didn't move, and Cloud knew they wouldn't leave until Reno finished reporting in with Rufus. So he was even more surprised when Reno came over and held the PHS out to him. Cloud took it, blinked at it, before putting it up to his ear.

"You were so curious, you couldn't stand it any longer, could you." And it wasn't really a question.

"No, sir."

"Are you surprised?"

"Yes, sir."

"Are you going to run away again?"

"I... I don't know, sir. I don't think I can, without your... special medicine helping me, like this time. I'll just come back." He couldn't keep all the wryness out of his voice. "You know that, though, sir."

"I thought I did, but you've proven me wrong on more than one occasion. I guess I shouldn't be that surprised--you are still a wild animal, after all."

"Can I ask a question, sir?"

The cool voice became amused. "What is it?"

"Is there more?"

A laugh. "What do you think? And do you really think if I had any significant portion of him around, that I'd keep it, under any circumstances?"

"It would seem foolish, sir."

"Now, wolf, I have a question for you."

"Yes, sir."

"What happened to them?"

"I'm not sure, sir." He paused, hesitated, heard Rufus waiting on the other end, could tell he was practically holding his breath. "They're gone. You... don't have to worry about them causing a problem in the wilderness."

"Well, that's a relief, now isn't it?" And the cool rage was so strong that, standing in front of him, even Reno winced. "If they didn't get loose into the wild, where did they go?"

Cloud pulled the PHS unit away from his ear, stared down at it.

"Fenrir? You will answer me." It was clear, even without the phone held to his ear. He glanced up at Reno, who nodded and pointed to the unit, and Cloud raised it again.

"I... I think..." And he had to be careful how he worded this, knew he would be in for an even worse punishment when he returned if he wasn't absolutely careful. "I believe... they found me."

Silence, and then a flat, "What."

And then, for some reason, even if it wasn't a smart move, he said, "Have you ever wondered what it would be like to fly, Rufus? I did it, once. I could do it again." The look Reno was giving him then was priceless, and he chuckled despite himself, the mask distorting it into a sound so unlike him. "You'll probably want the good doctor to take a look at me when we get back."

And then he flipped the PHS unit shut, ending the call, and held it out to Reno, who took it, and shook his head.

"You just bought yourself a lifetime in hell, you know that, right," the Turk breathed, and Cloud shrugged.

"What makes you think I haven't been in hell most of my life, Turk. Let's go. If he's going to shoot me again, I'd rather get it over with sooner than later."

***

By the time the train pulled into Midgar, he was curled up on the floor of their cabin, hands over his head and shivering. Reno was right, after all--without the crate around, and whatever other medicines they had, he was a wreck. And he had the feeling that Reno was purposefully withholding the medicine from him, because he didn't doubt they had enough in stock to keep him under the whole trip if they'd wanted, SOLDIER hyper or not.

As soon as they were pulled in and most of the Shinra personnel on the rest of the cars had filed out, grumbling about being late because of emergency repairs that had to be done in the middle of the snowstorm, a stretcher was pulled onto the train. Rude bodily lifted him and set him on it, and he refused to uncurl, to let go of the mask, shaking still. The pain started to die down, and when he became more fully aware, he recognized where they were headed.

Melantha was ready and waiting for them, and sent all but the senior Turk who came to observe--Tseng--out. She ordered Fenrir to strip. He did, and she told him to lie down on the examination chair, and he did that as well, and she took his vitals. He closed his eyes and thought about the feel of the wind through his hair, pointedly ignoring everything she was doing to him, until she actually spoke.

"Would you mind turning over, please?" Melantha said, and he opened his eyes in confusion, and she gestured with a hand, a circular motion. "I would like to examine your back."

"Ah..." And so he did as instructed, resting his head on his arms and staring off at nothing, before he realized that this entire time she'd looked at him without the mask on. Then again, Tseng was there, and considering her verbal slip-ups before she had to know who he was, so he relaxed, felt her carefully checking along his back, never straying close to his scar.

"...so I see. All right then, Fenrir, you can sit up, now, and let me give you your special medicine."

He turned over, sat up, heard her preparing a vial of the fluid, and he looked over at Tseng, who was simply staring... always, simply staring. He had one of the best pokerfaces--if he could he'd stick Tseng, Vincent, and Sephiroth in a room for a three-way staring contest to see who would win. But it was just a distraction before he felt the needle in his arm, and he clenched his eyes shut. When she finished, he opened them again, forcing himself to breathe regularly.

"When do you expect to have results, doctor?" Tseng asked. Melantha didn't look directly at him, which made Cloud worry.

"It'll take hours for the tests to run, and then I have to interpret the results and run comparisons, so... Probably twenty-four hours, possibly thirty-six."

"Aim for the twenty-four," Tseng said, and looked at Cloud. "Get dressed, and come with me."

"Yes, sir."

***

Tseng did not take him to Rufus's quarters, which he expected. He didn't take him down to the cell beneath Sector Zero, which he also expected. But he did take him below Sector Zero, into those strange corridors that seemed so empty, with only the occasional door to break the monotony. Tseng finally stopped outside of one, and opened the door, and pushed Cloud in. Cloud turned to growl at him as Tseng closed the door shut, and everything went dark.

His eyes adjusted quickly, though, and he found that he wasn't in his cell. There was a barred gate across from the door. He walked to it, reached up with his hands, tested the bars. He could pry them open easily enough, into the larger room beyond, but the place was suitably dark enough that he couldn't see who or what else was down there.

"If you want out, Fenrir," Tseng's voice, being broadcast from the ceiling, "then you'll have to kill the ones holding the keys. The keys are inside of them-you'll have to take them out yourself."

The barred gate came open, and Cloud staggered out into the dark... when he heard the sound of someone weeping. His eyes widened, and he looked up, shouted back.

"No! I'm not gonna kill people like this for your damned amusement!"

"It's not for our amusement, Fenrir. This is your punishment, and theirs. They're all criminals who have stolen from us. If you don't take care of them quickly enough, we'll pump Mako into the area, and then they won't be human anymore."

"What..." He fell silent in disbelief, and turned toward the sound of the crying. Gods, one of them couldn't be more than a young teenager, if that. "No... No, I can't."

"Then they'll turn into monsters, and you won't have a choice."

Cloud shoved the heels of his hands against his eyes, tried to think. He could try to break out, but--they would be able to find him--but then he wouldn't have to execute people who didn't deserve it--and then they probably wouldn't be subjected to Mako--but they might also be expecting it, and have a back-up plan in mind, which if Rufus or Tseng masterminded this, he wouldn't doubt.

***

When the door opened, Rufus stood on the other side, dressed as he always was in one of his white suits, Dark Nation seated obediently behind him. She stood up and padded closer, sniffing at Cloud's blood-covered hand. Cloud looked up, bleakly, and saw the vicious smile on Rufus's face, and only shook his head, dropping his gaze. Rufus said nothing, only reached down and fastened a lead, just like the one attached to Dark Nation's collar, to his own collar.

"Come with me, wolf."

"Yes, sir..."

***

Cloud sat in the kennel, occasionally being sniffed at by Dark Nation, and he sat with his arms around his legs, head resting on his knees. He wasn't wearing much besides the collar, and instead of letting him shower he was hosed down... something not unfamiliar from his time beneath Nibelheim.

But he took it. He knew that if he dealt with it all, took his punishment, then they'd let him out, eventually, sooner or later. When meals came, they were given to Dark Nation; he was only fed once a day, and it would be one of the younger Turks, nervously putting a food bowl down beside him, replenishing the water in his other bowl. Cloud only glared at them, and more often than not he gave the food to Dark Nation, and only drank the water.

She was let out more often than he was, as well. One of the younger Turks--he wondered if the seniors were being kept away from him on purpose, since they knew him, were more likely to engage with him--would come by with the lead, and call for Dark Nation. She would come, obediently, and they'd attach the lead and walk her off to wherever Rufus wanted her to be. At least it meant she could go outside; Cloud's only option to relieve himself was more or less a specified corner with a drain, and even Dark Nation seemed appalled by it.

Time went by, and Cloud found he didn't know how long this time, either. He was beginning to wonder when the whole year would have gone by, and he would have been "working" as a special operative for a full year. But it was a distant thought, just another thing to ponder, and he petted Dark Nation when she asked for the special attention from him. It wasn't her fault he was in there, after all. Besides, better to have allies than more enemies, even if they were in the lowly position of pet. Though he guessed Rufus was trying to tell him that he wasn't much better, either.

"Yeah, surprised you haven't broken out yet."

He looked up, frowning, at Reno. "He's made it perfectly clear that each time I do it, it will just get worse. I'm not gonna do it unless I have a good reason."

"Is that what you call what you did with the container?" Reno said, leaning against the far wall with his hands in his pockets. Dark Nation wasn't even in the kennel. "A good reason?"

"I needed to know how he was keeping me here, or else I'll never know how to break free."

"Uh... kid, I don't know if you've noticed," Reno said, scratching as his jaw, "but I think that'd be a bad idea. I mean, you saw what you did to the rebel base, right? We're still trying to figure out how you used spells without materia. The damn rocks are just about useless these days, but you go out there and you friggin' sank the base into the ground by your own damn self. And I know what Tseng and Rufus had you do, once you got back from the train, too."

Cloud didn't move from his spot on the floor. "And you had no problem with that."

"I didn't have any input, and he wouldn't have wanted any from me on that point, besides," Reno snapped.

"Oh, so you don't always agree with your boss," Cloud said, and Reno came forward and kicked at the bars separating them.

"You shut the hell up!"

"Well I don't see why the hell you've even bothered coming down here," Cloud growled, glaring at him. "So you like to fuck me, and you think that makes us friends?!"

"You don't--" And Reno stopped himself, didn't finish the movement of unclipping his nightstick. Instead he sank back onto his heels again, and released a pent-up breath. "Okay. Okay. You're getting pretty good at this manipulation crap yourself, kid, you know that?"

"Must be something in the air." Cloud nudged his water bowl with a toe. "Or the water. Maybe both." He sighed, then said, "I wasn't trying to make you mad to break down the cell wall. I could have done that myself by now. I just... figure it'll go easier if I go along with his punishment."

"You don't care about being stuck in here all damn day?" Reno said, brow furrowing, and Cloud looked up at him again, saw Reno's odd expression, and shrugged.

"I mean, I could care, but it's still not Hojo's labs. Getting a bit closer since that thing they made me do, though."

The Turk muttered an expletive, and squatted down beside the bars, closest to Cloud. "Well. He told me he was feeling up to letting you warm his toes tonight instead of the lady here. You'll have to get scrubbed down, and I'm gonna have to keep you on the leash. Are ya gonna do that, or not?"

Cloud raised his eyebrows, but Reno didn't waver, and he finally nodded. Reno jumped up, went to the gate's controls, had it opened up. Cloud stood up when Reno came with the leash, clipped it onto the collar, then motioned.

"C'mon. You really do reek, you know."

"It's been worse."

***

"Brought you a wolfie, boss," Reno cheerfully announced, and Rufus looked up from where he was sitting on the couch, with a book at hand. His cold eyes raked over Cloud, who was standing in a fresh pair of briefs but little else, and held out his hand. Reno walked over, tugging Cloud along, and put the other end in Rufus's hand. Rufus just stared up at Cloud a little longer, before giving a sharp tug, and Cloud managed to catch himself with one hand on the couch and the other hitting the coffee table, but at least his face hadn't hit the rug. It did put him on his knees, though, and he winced but didn't move from his spot on the floor.

"He cleaned up nicely, didn't he. But then, he always does. Sit."

"And what's a good wolf say?" Reno said, from behind, and Cloud closed his eyes, swallowed.

"Yes, sir."

"Good boy," Rufus said, and as soon as Cloud sat on the floor his hand found his hair. "Mm, I do love her velvety fur, but it still doesn't quite compare to your hair, wolf. In any case, I thought perhaps tonight you'd like to see how your friends were faring, since you behaved so well in the kennel."

"You have cameras trained on the kennel, too?" Cloud said, as Rufus turned on the television set.

"Of course. And Dark Nation would have reacted if you misbehaved."

And he should have guessed that. He wasn't just in there with the hound--he was in there to get smacked down by a hound if he put a toe out of line. He drew up his knees and wrapped his arm around his middle, watching as the channel flipped over to the news. There was a special going on about the recovery efforts made since Meteor's fall and the start of the long winter. It concentrated on Midgar, but there were segments on the other cities and towns throughout the world as well. Cloud was amused that Rufus had put it especially on a news station that wasn't overtly affiliated with Shinra, but then he saw the film of the rest of the Planet, and felt his heart sinking.

It wasn't... all terrible. But the winter was bad, everywhere, even in Cosmo Canyon, where they couldn't even come out at night anymore because of the deadly cold. Worst yet, the bad winter was increasing the number of monster attacks, because the monsters were growing desperate as well. And the "heroic members of Avalanche"--which had apparently grown into a much larger organization in his absence--had worked together with towns to form patrols and train people to protect themselves.

"We had two years to prepare for this," Rufus said, his hand still stroking Cloud's hair, a high ball glass of one of his drinks in the other hand. "Two years, with another winter, to give us an idea of what we'd be in for. And we're still struggling, as is the rest of the Planet."

"How... how long?" Cloud asked, looking up at Rufus, and he just pointed to the TV as they spoke with the elders at Cosmo Canyon, including Nanaki.

"It's impossible to predict how long this winter will last," Nanaki said. "But we're estimating a year, at least." He turned his gaze to the camera, and said, sincerely, "If you are out there, using the abandoned Mako reactors for your own ends--please stop. Stop this. You will only make this winter last longer."

"A noble sentiment, but I wonder if our enemies will listen," Rufus said, as the station cut back to the news anchors. Rufus muted the screen, looked back down at Cloud, with a twitch of his lips. "And they won't. I know it's hard to believe this, Cloud..." His hand slid down, under Cloud's chin. "But we do need you."

"Then... why all the subterfuge?" Cloud asked, honestly. "Why not just let me go, so I can help everyone? The others? Midgar, Junon, Fort Condor, Wutai, Gongaga, Rocket Town, Costa del Sol, Icicle Inn, Mideel--gods, I could do something to help them...!"

"And you will." Rufus put the glass down, and reached up over his shoulder with the free hand--Tseng put a folder in it, and he set the folder down on the coffee table alongside his glass. "We've found one of our biggest problems. And you're going to kill him for me."

Cloud stared at the file, with its confidential tabs, and the name neatly stenciled across the top for identification, and he looked back up at Rufus, face paling. "He... He's dead."

"Apparently, he isn't," Rufus said, voice clipped, taking up his glass again.

***

Cloud stared at the file blankly, but Rufus was still sitting on the couch, sipping his drink and watching him expectantly, so Cloud reached up and flipped the file open. It was thick with notes, reports turned in from Shinra outposts and Avalanche collaborators (mostly Vincent, Cloud noticed), and he went through them carefully, got to the hard info they'd determined in the back, along with a satellite view of the premises.

"...it doesn't make any sense," Cloud murmured. "It... It can't be him. And why... why all this? Why would he do...?"

"An excellent question, and judging from Valentine's assessments, his behavior doesn't seem to match the man we used to know." Rufus leaned back on the couch. "Sephiroth came back from the dead, after all, did he not?"

"He... was a very special circumstance," Cloud said, flipping through the reports again. "I just... It doesn't..." He shook his head. "This... is another one of your tricks, isn't it? Is this one of your punishments?"

"As much fun as it is to make you squirm, Cloud," Rufus said, "I wouldn't probably go to all this trouble to forge reports from Valentine, the satellite images, et cetera. My time is too valuable for that, and the same goes for the Turks."

Cloud looked back down at the file, back up at him. "How... How long have you known?"

"We heard rumors earlier, but I wasn't going to mention it to you until we knew more for certain." He put the glass, now empty, back down on the table, and stroked Cloud's hair again. "But from everything we've seen, it looks like him, even if the actions are... odd."

"Can I... please... visit the church in Sector Five, Rufus?" Cloud asked, and Rufus tilted his head, ran his thumb over Cloud's lip.

"That area--the church in particular--is practically an Avalanche safety zone. We've been asked not to restore the church itself, but to preserve it, and Avalanche keeps someone around at all times to keep an eye on it. It would be very difficult to get you inside without your friends finding out, and that is something I am avoiding."

"That... that isn't a no," Cloud said, even letting a bit of hopefulness into his voice, and Rufus actually chuckled.

"You're right. That isn't a no. But just why do you want to go there?"

"I need to talk to her," Cloud said. "I have to find out if this is real."

"Her. The flower girl?" His brow furrowed, then, even though his finger kept stroking Cloud's chin, his lips. "You think she's still around, do you?" Cloud nodded, and Rufus leaned back again. "...If this will help clarify matters, then I'll see what I can do. But you'll need to report to me what you find out, Fenrir."

"Yes, sir," Cloud said.

"Good boy. Now. I believe Reno told you why I wanted you out tonight."

"Yes, sir." He rubbed at his eyes, after glancing back down at the file. "Though I... I don't know... what good I'll be..."

"Let's find out." And Rufus stood, and pulled on the lead, bringing Cloud up to his feet.

***

And it was strange, stranger than usual, because when they got up to the room, Rufus undressed himself, and other than securing the other end of the lead to one of the bedposts he didn't—do anything. There was no threat, no binding of his wrists or ankles, and Cloud didn't trust it, sat on the edge of the bed close to the pillows and clutched at the sheets worriedly.

Rufus stood in front of him, cupped his face in his hands, ran his thumbs across his cheeks. When he leaned down to kiss him, there wasn't the usual urgency, wasn't the usual possessiveness. He kissed him, and his hands slid down to Cloud's shoulders, rubbed into them, gently kneaded them, before he sat down beside Cloud on the bed. Cloud started to murmur in surprise, but Rufus just started kissing him again, slowly, thoroughly, began to lean over him to push him down, but…

His back hit the mattress, and they were still kissing, and Rufus's hand trailed down his side, caressed his skin. They separated, and Rufus propped himself up on one elbow, looking down at him… and Cloud felt himself blushing, looked away.

"Just relax," Rufus said, and Cloud blinked, looked up at him. "Sometimes I…" But he trailed off, ran his fingers over Cloud's lips. "Sometimes I wish I wasn't like this. That… I hadn't had the building dropped on me, that I could still be ignorantly arrogant and proud, and pretend that everything that had happened didn't actually affect me… be above it all…" He tsked, ran his hand through the long, pale blond hair, watching the way it separated between his fingers. "Instead, every day I'm struggling to keep the entire city from sinking under. It would be so easy to turn my back on the whole lot of them—pack up my bags, find somewhere else to wait out the long winter. But I can't." He frowned, not at Cloud, but at some idea in his head. "Using people is easy… makes it easy to be 'responsible' for them, because they're just numbers, and any Shinra worth his salt can manage numbers. But helping them when there's not always something they can give back…"

"So, what did it?" Cloud asked. "What made you… change? I mean, the building could have fallen on you, Meteor could have wrecked Midgar… but nothing about that meant you _had_ to change. You could still be… like that."

"Honestly?" Rufus kept petting him, running his hand down his side, down his chest, down to his thigh before gliding back up, sometimes lightly scratching but… not with his usual harshness. "I was powerless. In the face of all that… It was only my Turks' loyalty that pulled me out from that rubble, more or less whole. And Meteor…" He fell quiet again, fell still, his arm draped across Cloud's torso. "So, tell me? Why did you stop him? Who could have blamed you? After… seeing all of those videos, knowing what the rest of this world has put you through. After seeing you help people who can never give you one whit in return, might even hate you for it later. Who could blame you for wanting to see him win? After all, you loved him, didn't you?"

Cloud watched Rufus, looked at his face, at the lingering scars that he tried to hide with his long hair. Then he looked at the pale blue eyes, normally shuttered and glacial and so hard to read, and finally said, "I did it because I do love him. And that… that wasn't Sephiroth anymore. He didn't want to be like that."

"Even though he would have become a god?" Rufus asked, and Cloud nodded.

"He would have become a god, but he was still being used… by Jenova. He wanted to be free."

Rufus's hand touched the collar around his neck. "You must hate me, doing this to you."

"I…" Cloud blinked, and felt the truth coming out despite himself, "I don't hate you. I… don't hate anyone, anything."

"No one is that good, wolf," Rufus said with a small smile. "No one is that forgiving."

"Either… I hate none, or I think I'd hate all, and…" Cloud shook his head minutely. "I can't… there are too many precious things for that…"

"Even after this?" Rufus said, touching the collar again, before going back to pet his hair. "Even after… everything." When Cloud nodded, Rufus rolled to the side, pulling Cloud along with him in an embrace, so Cloud's head was in the crook of his neck and shoulder, and he couldn't see Rufus's face. "Cloud… if I did it… if I let you go… would you come back?"

Cloud knew right then that he was glad he couldn't see Rufus's face, that Rufus couldn't see his. And it would be easy enough to lie, to say he'd come back, and then take off and never see this man again. Easy enough to lie. Easy enough to escape. But his gaze strayed to that other corner, the one in the dark, and he saw the green staring at him.

"How… How would you make sure that I wouldn't get sick?" he asked, carefully, and Rufus's hands stilled from stroking his hair, his back.

"…It will always go back to that, won't it."

Cloud clamped his eyes shut. Rufus's hands were still deceptively gentle, but he could hear the shift in the other man's voice. Rufus had actually thawed a bit, they were sharing a moment of honesty, and he'd gone and ruined it by asking a question that actually made godsdamned sense.

"That's right. I could let you go, and let you keep coming back, pulled back by strings," Rufus whispered into his ear. "How would you like it, living like that? Always wanting to come back for that thing you can't find?" And then, even more quietly, "How would you like it, if I burned it—that thing that we have—to the ground, for you? Then you'd be released, Cloud. But what you want would be gone. Is it worth it to you? Is it worth that much? If those strings no longer hold you, would you find yourself coming back to me instead?" Cloud couldn't answer, couldn't breathe, and Rufus laughed, low and cruel, into his ear. "After all, what else can I burn for you? Not Midgar. Not all these innocents. Not the thousands of people who depend on my kindness every day, every night. We couldn't be that selfish, could we?"

"N-no, sir," he breathed, and Rufus's hands clenched, the one in his hair gripping it tightly, and the hand at his back raking nails across his skin as it closed into a fist.

"So which will it be? Losing it forever, for your freedom, or staying here with me?"

"You…"

"What was that? Your voice was too quiet, wolf."

"You!" Cloud swallowed, gagged when the leash was pulled and his head yanked back flat to the mattress. He grunted, looked up to watch as Rufus crawled over him, coiling the leash into his hand.

"That's what I thought. But even if those strings tie you, wolf, I'm the one who holds your leash."

"Yes, sir," Cloud managed, and Rufus smirked.

"Then roll over, and let me mount you and fuck you like the beast you are."

***

He was aware of Rufus leaving the next morning. He felt the harsh kiss to the nape of his neck, but kept his eyes shut, pretending to be asleep still, yet knowing he wasn't fooling Rufus at all. It was some time after that that the door came open and the light flicked on. Cloud finally turned over, saw Rude standing at the door with a fresh change of his uniform, the mask held awkwardly in the other.

Cloud's gaze went from the clothes to Rude's shaded eyes, and nodded. Rude didn't say anything in return, just nodded, set the uniform down on the nearest armchair, and left him alone to change.

***

Cloud had to report first thing to the science department for his shot of medicine, and Dr. Melantha seemed more subdued than usual. He only guessed that she'd received enough warning from the Turks to treat him--well, not even as a patient anymore, but a thing that she had to make sure kept working. After that he went back into his usual routine, and the SOLDIERs seemed surprised to see him back, and they tried pestering him about where he had been but he didn't respond beyond a shake of his head and then telling them to get ready for some sparring practice.

After that, it was back to his quarters, and he washed up, and when food arrived it was actually a good amount, which was good because his stomach reminded him then that he hadn't eaten a real meal in quite some time. So he ate, and after a bit Reno came in.

"The good news is," he said, without any other greeting, "that we think we found a spot of time to get you in there. The bad news is... trying to get in there without all the other people around. We've contacted Tifa and let her know that someone has requested entry and some alone time, and damn if she doesn't think it's Elmyra. You owe Rude for this one, 'cause he's the one who told her. Anyway. So, like, we'll get you out there tonight."

"...what's the bad news?" Cloud asked, and Reno shrugged uncomfortably.

"Valentine's in town." He walked closer to the office desk, where Cloud had been in the middle of typing up a report about his day. "I mean, ain't exactly bad news, but it ain't exactly good, either. Rufus is still pretty damn sure that he thinks you're you, and even the physical changes aren't enough to throw him."

"Well, get me there without him knowing," Cloud said, and Reno shook his head.

"Ain't so easy, with him. I don't know how the hell he does it, but it's almost like he's still in the Turk network and knows what we're up to. I can't go for shit coffee outside without feeling like he's keeping an eye on us."

"Perhaps he's appalled you're drinking the bad stuff," Cloud said, with a grin, and Reno smirked.

"Nah. I'm sure it's 'cause he secretly has the hots for me. Hey, stop laughin'."

***

"And don't think about running off this time, okay?" Reno muttered, as they approached the back side of the church.

"I won't," he promised, and, after another look around to make certain he was alone, he crept down from the pile of debris, where Reno would wait for him, and slunk around another pile of concrete until he reached the church's back door. It came open, revealing the tall, large back room that led up to the rafters and roof, and he felt his lips twitch a bit at the memories. But then he climbed up the short stairs to the door that led into the sanctuary, and he took a deep breath, and he walked in.

The Buster Sword was there, point-down, behind the flower patch, closest to the podium, closest to where he just walked in. Taking a steadying breath, he looked around the sanctuary to ensure he was alone, before reaching up and pulling the mask off his face. He walked over to the flower patch, sat down on the broken floorboards, and reached down with a hand to cup one of the blooms.

He could feel her, here, even still.

"Sorry I haven't been here sooner," he said, quietly. "I... don't think he would have let me."

There was a soft giggle beside him, a splash of calming green in his head, and he turned his head out of surprise to see her sitting beside him, in her pink dress... unharmed, but her hair was still loose, unbound, as it had been when he put her to her rest in the lake. _"Well, that's a new look for you."_

"I didn't have a choice," Cloud said, feeling the blush across his face, and dropping his gaze. "I-I'm sorry."

 _"No, no, I'm not upset, silly,"_ she said, and he felt one of her hands, over his left one. _"I'm just happy that you came."_

"You..." Cloud swallowed, then looked up, saw her deep green eyes watching him, and she had those eyes--those eyes that saw everything, that knew something beyond everyone else's knowing. "You're happy I'm here? Even now? Even with..."

 _"Even with him tagging along?"_ Aerith said, with a smile, and looking over her shoulder. Cloud started to look, too, but her other hand plopped over his eyes. _"Oh no you don't. He's had too much of your attention lately. It's my turn."_

"Your turn?"

 _"We aren't enemies, you know,"_ she said, and lowered her hand, so he could look at her again. _"Sephiroth and I... We were, but we aren't. He only wants to protect you, in his own way. And you want him so badly, he won't just go into the Lifestream like he's supposed to."_

"W-well, you're still here," Cloud stammered, and she laughed.

 _"I'm everywhere, now, Cloud. The last of the Ancients... and the one who summoned Holy... apparently, that, combined with your strong memories, and the memories of everyone else on the Planet... has made me something of a representative."_ She booped his nose with a fingertip. _"So you might want to get used to me being around."_

"I couldn't think of anything I'd like more," he said, and she scooted closer to him on the floorboards, resting her head against his shoulder, as if the shoulder pauldrons were the most comfortable thing in the world.

_"Silly. But, that's not what you're really here to talk to me about."_

"Aerith... can you tell me? Is it really him?"

 _"No."_ Her hand curled around his, comforting, tightly. _"But he looks like him, and he's strong like him. He's something that Jenova took, and made to her own liking."_

"But her will--we killed her--"

_"He has enough of a personality of his own, now, and he... he hears all the screams of the angry ones who died during Meteor. If I'm one representative, and I'm trying to keep us all from drowning... he's the advocate on the other side. He wants to see everything burnt to the ground, covered with ash and snow, dead forever."_

"Does he really have that kind of power?" And she looked up at him, then leaned up and whispered into his ear. His eyes slid closed, and he nodded, acknowledging what he would have to do, and then started to stand up when another voice spoke to him from above.

"Is she all right?"

Cloud clenched his eyes shut, before taking a deep breath and looking upward, to the rafters, where Vincent was squatting, staring down at him. Cloud sat back down again. "How long have you been here?"

"Long enough. If I come down, will you run away?"

"I should. Or you should. You aren't supposed to know--"

The flap of a cape, and Vincent landed down beside him, kneeling down to look at him, crimson eyes searching his face. "And why is that? Everyone but me, Nanaki, and Cait Sith thinks you're dead. And according to the rest of the world, you should be. So what has happened? And why are you meekly going along with it?"

"Who said I was going meekly?" Cloud asked, with a sharp grin, and Vincent chuckled.

"Of course."

"We probably don't have a lot of time. I don't know how long I have before one of the others will come to retrieve me. Probably Tseng..."

"Probably. He visits here often enough, it wouldn't be so suspicious." Vincent shifted, so he was sitting, one leg still drawn up, resting his arm over the knee. "Tell me what's going on."

"I... They kept me under Midgar for two years," Cloud said. "And then they gave me a choice... become Fenrir, or they'd forget the key and leave me to die. So I became Fenrir. And... I've done as they've told me, because... he... Rufus..." He dropped his gaze, shook his head. "I don't know what's going on there, but apparently he wants me. On a leash, as his wolf, and... in other ways, too."

"You could have left," Vincent said, quietly. "But... you haven't. What chain does he have on you?"

"Sephiroth... or something of Jenova... maybe both." Cloud picked up the mask, held it in his hands, stared down at it. "I don't really know, and it hasn't been made clear, but if I leave Midgar, I... I get sick. Very sick. So if I have to leave the city, there's got to be special preparations. Or so they say. Every time I've tried to get out, it's been true." He looked up at Vincent. "And... he showed me videos... and showed me, made me... realize that I'm dangerous, Vincent. I'm... more dangerous than I knew. Videos from the time under Nibelheim, and then they made me take out a rebel base not so long ago... I can still black out, just like I did two years ago, and do… terrible things, without realizing it, without being able to stop myself."

"The attack on the rebel base on the western continent was some time ago," Vincent murmured, frowning. "But that was you? ...There were spells involved."

"I... I know, they said so, too, but I'm not sure how I did it," Cloud said with a shake of his head. "And I am worried, Vincent... if I lose it, like he did... but I don't want to stay, not like that, but I don't know how to leave. And everyone else... everyone else... thinks I'm dead, anyway. Maybe living as a ghost is best."

"Is it really living?" he asked, and Cloud just dropped his gaze. Vincent leaned forward, kissed his forehead. "I will continue my own investigations. I've been keeping an eye out, and Cait Sith helps me when he can. Just know that you are missed, no matter what he's telling you, and that you are strong, strong enough to overcome your own demons, no matter what he's shown you." He stood up, cape falling down around him, hiding his slender figure. "I imagine we'll see each other again, soon, because... that man you're hunting, I've been watching him, as well."

Cloud nodded. "I... I saw your reports."

"I'll be in touch," Vincent promised, with a nod, and then leaped upwards, disappearing into the rafters. Cloud thought he saw Vincent make his way out of the hole in the roof, but then picked himself up, set the mask over his face, walked away from the flowers, from the Buster Sword. The shadow stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame, watching him quietly, and he stopped when he reached him, looked up at him.

"Nothing will stop me from loving you," he said, and closed his eyes when he felt leather-clad arms come around him, holding him in an embrace. The white wings came around him, as well, and he leaned into him.

***

Reno watched as he joined him back up at the top of the pile of debris. "Thought for a few minutes I'd have to ask Tseng to step in," he said, and Cloud shook his head.

"No... it's all right. She had... a lot to tell me."

"Useful stuff?"

"Enough to know that destroying him will be a pleasure," Cloud growled, and Reno nodded, with a small smirk.

"That's what we like to hear. Well, c'mon then, we've gotta head back."

***

As much as Rufus liked to have him on the physical leash, he did not, at least, parade him around the complex with it on. But Cloud became used to Reno turning up, leash coiled up in hand, and the Turk walked him to Rufus's quarters. As soon as the door closed, the leash came on, and he was led to wherever Rufus was waiting for him. Sometimes he resisted, sometimes he went along meekly--he got better at reading their moods, at least, knew when they'd tolerate some attitude, and when Rufus wanted his complete compliance.

Then one night, it was just the two of them, in Rufus's rather large tub, which he insisted was used as part of his physical therapy. They had already washed up before getting in the tub, the Wutai way, and Rufus seemed pleased just to sit with him there, in the silence, and occasionally his eyes would slide over to the collar around Cloud's neck.

All the small talk had died out during dinner. If he was going to take the chance, now was the time. Cloud hesitated, then said, "Plan Dea."

Rufus watched him, watched him, let the silence stretch out between them again, before he said, "Really, Strife, I was enjoying this time just looking at you, with your skin all pink from the bath. I'm not sure where you came across those words--"

"I remembered them," Cloud said, suddenly, knowing it was dangerous but wanting to know--needing to know. It was another piece of the puzzle that kept him chained here. "Just... just the words. They're important, aren't they?"

Again, with the silence, and finally Rufus stood up, got out of the bath, and beckoned to him. Cloud followed, and didn't even ask--he immediately took down Rufus's towel--the larger one, the most absorbent one, the softest one--and started to dry the other man off. He did it as he had been trained, efficiently, but not roughly. Usually if Rufus wanted something more he let Cloud know, but he didn't. Once Rufus was dry, Cloud hung the towel up, properly, and handed Rufus his robe--and only after that did he start drying himself off, much more quickly, roughly, with his own towel. Once he was done, Rufus found his leash on the hook on the wall, where normally a robe would have hung for Cloud, and fastened it to his collar.

They walked down the hallways and up the stairs, into the bedroom that they shared. For once, there was no sign of any of the Turks, though Cloud didn't doubt they were watching. Rufus didn't let go of the leash, but crossed his arms, leaned back against the door and watched Cloud coolly.

"Do you know why Sephiroth was created? Officially, I mean."

"He was born because... it was part of an experiment to create a human with the power of the Ancients," Cloud said. "And it was thought that Jenova was an Ancient, at the time."

"Unofficially, there were a number of reasons, but once he was born and his lethal potential realized, my old man knew exactly what he could use him for. A weapon. My family started out as weapons makers, you understand." Cloud nodded, and Rufus actually turned his eyes away. "So my old man had Sephiroth. Sephiroth, the great warrior, who brought Wutai down to its knees... until he went insane in Nibelheim. But that's getting ahead, because before then, he was having his little affair with you." At this point, he did look back at Cloud, as sharp as ever. "I was envious, I suppose. My old man was on top of everything, and though I had the Turks eating out of my hands by that point, the Turks wouldn't be enough to topple him. I'd need a weapon equal to Sephiroth. And I hated him. I had to break him. I tried to court you away from him, just because I could... and you wouldn't come."

Cloud stared at him. "You... You did?"

"I did. And you refused. So I tried to force you, so I could mail Sephiroth a neat and tidy little package, evidence of our sex, to let him know that everything he owned, truly belonged to the Shinra, and that he was nothing without us. It didn't work. And after I'd broken you down as well as I could, I realized it wasn't because you were afraid of him, wasn't just because of some idol worship. You refused me until I broke you, all because you loved that monster."

Cloud only continued staring at him, hardly able to believe it.

"What a blow to my ego that was. I had turned on all the godsdamned Shinra charm I had, and you wouldn't come to me. I tried forcing you, and you wouldn't come to me. I had the Turks threaten you, and you wouldn't come to me." Rufus kept staring. "So I went to Hojo, and I gave him a special project. He was to take you, and make you into another monster--one of my very own. It would be revenge against Sephiroth and give me the weapon I needed to kill my father--two birds, one stone." Rufus jerked on the lead, pulling Cloud toward him. "I didn't know you had survived Nibelheim, at first. The Turks were even blind to Hojo's activities. They knew he had dragged yours and Donovan's bodies down below, but your heart had a hole in it, and they thought certainly you would die. But apparently you didn't. And Hojo, also wanting revenge, decided to make you into one of his Clones. And unlike what he thought, you were the closest thing he created to the original." He snorted. "So Plan Dea was resumed, and I had no idea. Until I saw you again, at the top of the Shinra building."

Cloud couldn't help his expression, he was still staring, still disbelieving. "So... that laughter... when we fought..."

"I realized you were alive, or something like you was alive. I didn't quite believe that it was you. And then everything happened, and then we got into Hojo's records." Rufus raised a hand, cupped Cloud's chin. "And I realized, here was my chance. You were meant to be mine, and I could make it a reality, make you into my wolf, just like you were supposed to be." He leaned in, kissed Cloud chastely on the lips. "Of course, it isn't just like that, after all. The damned monster still has his hooks in you. But I've been using that against you, and I won't let him take you away from me again. He'll stay out of reach, and you'll stay out of his, and in time I'd like to believe that you'll realize that he's gone. He's dead, Cloud. He can't give you what you want or need anymore."

"Rufus," he stammered, and Rufus pulled him up against him, his hands sliding along his skin, closing around his hips and pulling him against his body.

***

He was returned to his own quarters after Rufus had fallen asleep, and Reno had blinked at the sight of him naked in the hall. Rufus had been rougher than usual, so much that Cloud's body, which he'd been neglecting in some ways, took longer to heal.

"Shit, kid, you know we can't just use materia to patch people up anymore," Reno said, shoving his clothes at him.

"It's what he wanted," Cloud said, shrugging, and pulling on his clothes. "It'll be gone by morning." He looked up at Reno, then, frowning a bit. "Can we... Can we get some ice cream?"

Reno blinked, then stifled a laugh. "You are a weird one. But yeah. Yeah, we can manage that. Now get your damn clothes on."

Reno took Cloud back to his quarters, slipped back out of the room, and then came back with the promised ice cream, in chilled bowls, even.

"Nothing fancy," Reno said with a shrug, "but I thought, what the hell, everybody likes vanilla."

"Vanilla's just fine," Cloud said, dressed in some fatigues for sleeping, and he sat in one of the armchairs in the office, and Reno sat across, and they ate ice cream like it was the most normal damn thing in the world. And Reno wasn't even trying to be pervy about it, which was amazing. He still seemed far too interested in watching Cloud eat it, but he didn't say anything untoward, and when they finished and stacked their bowls to be taken back and cleaned by mess, Reno grinned down at him.

"You're still all right, kid."

"Don't say things like that," Cloud warned him, looking up at him before he stood up, stretched. "Your boss is still trying to keep me chained up. Wild things don't like that."

"Heh. Maybe that's exactly why I said that." Reno turned to leave, with a lazy wave over his shoulder. "Rest up. Word is we'll be mobilizing soon to deal with that thing."

Cloud went to the bathroom. He brushed his teeth. He replaced the bandage over his arm, and he sat on the edge of his bed, watching the clock click over from 0159 hours to 0200. He waited a bit longer, and a bit longer, and then stood up, changed. The shadow was watching him, he could feel it, his whole body humming with the feeling, and he put on the mask and stepped out. This time of night, the halls were completely dark, even without safety lights, because they were trying to conserve energy. He kept the glow of his eyes as low as possible, walked his way to one of the emergency stairwells, and took himself down to the floor with the science department. He slipped in, could feel the power of electricity thrumming the walls, feeding the instruments and machines that did things too important to just shut down. He walked past Melantha's office and private lab, then stopped, and walked back. He slipped his card into the reader beside her door, and it came open.

Melantha wasn't there, just her plants, and her office was dark. There was nothing strange about it… but Cloud could see it, a flicker of the green, beyond one of the bookcases. Cloud walked up to the bookcase, then, felt along the wooden edge, pulled experimentally... and the bookcase swung open, revealing the door on the other side. He tried his card again on its lock, only to be denied, and despite himself he smirked.

He broke the lock, ramming his hand through the mechanism and out the other side. He pushed on the door until it opened, and then he stepped into the room. They had played it up nicely, tried to make Melantha sympathetic, tried to make her seem trustworthy, only tied to the Shinra, so tied that she couldn't help him... and damn if it hadn't almost worked. But here he was, in that place, with two Mako chambers, some of the few remaining on the entire Planet, and one of them was completely covered with a metal shield, and the other was open... and had been since his last visit, he was sure.

 _"Don't leave me."_ He walked up to the sealed chamber, ignoring the control panel for the contraption completely, and raised his left hand, running it along the smooth, seamless metal.

"I'll never just leave you," he breathed. "He wanted... to make me his. But I'm here with you, now. I'm sorry it took me so long."

 _"I am patient. I knew you would."_ It ran completely counter to the pleading from before, but Cloud wondered if that was really Sephiroth or an echo of himself, and decided it didn't really matter. They had become One, before, in the center of everything, with the Lifestream and the Mako all around them. Sephiroth had given them a space of safety and quiet from the Planet's anger, and they had--

"There isn't much left, is there?" he said, stepping up close and leaning his head against the chamber, his left hand still stroking it, as if the one on the other side could feel it.

_"Enough. Enough to fill the hole in your heart. Enough... for now. I am patient. I can come back for you, in a greater capacity, later. But they... they've slowed me down. It's damnably annoying."_

He chuckled despite himself, and he knew it wasn't even just the Shinra that the voice spoke of. It was that other thing. The one that looked like him. "We're all fools," Cloud said. "But this one loves you, like a fool."

 _"I am not a fool,"_ the voice said. _"...but I do love you, like one, as well."_

"Then let's not waste anymore time." Cloud looked up, and sank his fingers into the metal, simultaneously pulling it upwards and outwards, so as not to threaten the glass. And he pulled, and the metal shrieked, and it peeled like the skin off a fruit, finally revealing the prize on the inside. He cast the metal to the ground, carelessly, then stepped up on the shelf made by the mechanics and tubes that fed and managed the chamber. And he pressed his hands against the glass, lightly, staring inside the glow, and he could see it... the tattered remains of a wing, the beating, pulsing organ that resembled a heart, but was different, and... somehow, he could feel it, even if he couldn't see it, the multitude of cells swimming about, bonding with one another, joining together, trying to make one whole again. "It's all right," he whispered, "because... I'm here with you..."

The glass shattered.

***

That feeling of becoming One... he couldn't describe it. It had been more than just having sex, though there was something much like that, too, but at one point he and Sephiroth could have been the same--absolutely the same, their thoughts existing side-by-side--and their bodies weren't really confined by their skin--he honestly couldn't tell where one of them stopped and one of them began. He didn't really understand it, had never really understood what had happened after the Reunion, in the crater, before Sephiroth had broken him and cast him out, so he could become stronger, strong enough again to defeat him.

But there was something of that feeling, now. The liquid Mako had remained in the air after the glass shattered, as if that moment of time was frozen, before that essence within it that was Sephiroth sought him out, and rode the Mako to do it. He stood there with open arms, welcoming it, welcoming Sephiroth, welcoming everything within him, and letting the cells that had only hummed before break into full song.

Others were coming. The rapture had drowned out everything else on the Planet, for a few moments, but bits of it was starting to come back to him now, and he turned to watch as the entire department of the Turks came in, with Rufus with Dark Nation by the lead, rifle in hand, and Cloud could hear squadrons of SOLDIERs rallying outside of Melantha's office. The space was too small for all of them, though.

"So you found it," Rufus said, stepping forward, as arrogant as ever. "Congratulations. Now what will you do, since you've destroyed the last of him?"

"Destroyed him?" he said, the voice behind the mask delighted, even as it was distorted. "Is that what you think I've done? I've set him free!" And as he said it, he flung his arms out, and from his back came the wings, feathers as black as ink as he'd always imagined them, the perfect shadow to Sephiroth's light. Some of the Turks shrunk back, and even though Reno's face grew harder; Cloud had seen the moment of terror in the Turk's eyes. But Reno and Rude and Tseng and Elena stood around Rufus, protecting him along with Dark Nation, as always.

"Strife," Rufus said, his voice still calm, "you have us all impressed and shaking in our boots. Tell me you haven't lost what's left of your damned mind. It'd be even more inconvenient to explain to your friends that you'd come back just as he had come back, after all."

"You never owned me," Cloud growled. "You never did. And your Plan Dea didn't succeed either, even after all these years." He reached underneath the turtleneck of the sweater, and tore the collar from around his throat, flinging it to the ground. "You wanted to show me how inhuman I truly was, Rufus. Well, here I am, here's what you have to show for it. Is it enough?"

Rufus smirked. "It is impressive, like I said. And it's fun watching you think you're free. You might have set him free, Strife, but there's something else here."

"Like hell," Cloud said. "You're bluffing, again."

"Do you think so?" Rufus said, lowering his rifle. "Do you really want to try me, wolf? If you do, the collar I put around your pretty neck will only be stronger. Besides, we have a common enemy, in that thing that looks like him. Aren't you going to help me keep your friends all nice and safe?"

"I can do it on my own."

"Then why haven't you left yet?" Rufus stepped closer, holstered his rifle, held out his hand. "This is your chance. Come back to me, my winged wolf, or else I'll pull you to heel the other way. And you won't like it. He won't like it, either."

"Fuck off," Cloud demanded. "And clear the way out of here. No one else around here deserves my fangs more than you do, Rufus."

"And where will you go, then? Will you run back to Avalanche, as you are now?"

Cloud didn't answer, simply flung out his arm. There was the shimmer in the air of a stop spell being cast on each and every single one of them, and Cloud stepped down and simply walked past them, all of them, stopping to look at Rufus on the way out.

"You still do some good in this world, and for that reason I let you live."

***

Any time he encountered anyone on the complex, he simply did the same thing, casting a spell on them to either put them to sleep or stop them entirely. He did it without thinking of it--it was just natural, a thing he could do, and it avoided unnecessary destruction or casualties. He finally stood out at the front of the complex, and saw the rest of the evening guard shifting anxiously, uncertain if they were to engage him or not, as their superior's voices had all stopped in the middle of broadcasting orders.

He didn't stand around to let them ponder for long, but knelt down and then leaped upwards, flapping his great wings once and then twirling through the air, weaving between the ruined structure of the plate and buildings above until he was out in the open sky. There were clouds swirling all around, and snow, and he debated where he could go. He couldn't go straight to Avalanche, but he couldn't think of any way to contact Vincent, either, and if he went to the church it was possible he'd encounter one of the others.

So he would go toward Gongaga. It was the only place that made sense, and would put him closer to their enemy, in any case. And Vincent would find him there, he was sure.

It was freeing, flying through the sky again. He hadn't done it with wings before, had only flown as Sephiroth's strings had pulled him, but he had his own strength now. He would carry himself and Sephiroth away from all of them, and they would fight that monster, and then everyone would be safe again. He could be free again.

Gods, it felt so good to be free--he hadn't even realized he still wore the mask.

***

The spell dispersed for all of them at roughly the same time, and everyone stopped, blinked, turned to Rufus for commands. Rufus knelt down, and pet Dark Nation's head as the hound whined, and he looked up at the Turks.

"Dismiss them. All of them. They can't bring him back now."

"But boss... he called your bluff," Reno said, scratching his head, and Rufus grinned up at him.

"Oh, did he?" He looked to Tseng, who nodded, and stepped aside.

***

He was flying swiftly for the coastline when he first felt it. The burn started in the mask and suddenly filled his whole body with agony, even the wings, and he cried out, tried to use his hands to peel the mask away from his face. But it wouldn't go. It wouldn't go, and his fingers clawed at it, trying to make it stop, so desperate he hadn't realized he was falling from the sky.

***

Rufus walked into his office, where Tseng was waiting for him.

"She's got him," was all Tseng said, pointing to one of Rufus's monitors. "He hasn't gotten that far, yet."

"Good. Get Reno—I'll rely on you two for the retrieval. Make damned sure you take her with you." Rufus sat down in his chair, as Dark Nation came up to his side, and he chuckled. "Seems like the son still bows to the mother in some respects, after all."

***

The burning--he lost track of how much time had passed. He had hardly realized he hit the ground, broken some bones from the fall and mended them in the time it took for the team to find him. They had only a vague idea of where he was, after all, without the collar, and that meant time... time he spent writhing, in agony, until he finally curled up with his wings surrounding him in a tight sphere of black feathers.

Tseng drove the truck, for once, glancing back on occasion to check on their quiet team member. Melantha sat in the back of the truck, her hands trembling and her eyes shut tight. Reno operated the searchlight mounted on top of the Shinra truck, trying to find a sign of Cloud in the falling snow.

"Damn white stuff makes it hard to see anything," Reno muttered. "At this rate we're more likely to hit him than light him up." He looked over at Tseng. "You knew about this?"

Tseng nodded. "She's a last resort. But I think what happened with Strife and the Commander's remains did not go as he had expected." He breathed in, let it out through his nose in an exasperated breath. "I still say it'd be better to put him down. A feral dog is a valuable weapon, but only so long as it can be controlled."

"Is that what we are, though, boss?" Reno asked. "I don't mind being Rufus's hound, but dammit--I don't wanna be controlled, either, you know? Not like... not like what's been happening with them."

Tseng glanced at him, then nodded. "I know what you mean. And no, I don't think we are that way. If we disagree with him... on most things, he would listen to us. Consider our opinions valid. You know that."

"Yeah, just... this one thing. I'd wish he'd listen to us about this one godsdamned thing--whoa, there he is!"

And Tseng pulled the truck to a careful stop, and Reno kept the spotlight centered on the quivering sphere of black feathers, by that point already covered with a layer of snow. Reno took a deep breath, then slid open the window separating the front seats from the bed of the truck, and looked down at Melantha.

"We're here, sweetcheeks." And she looked up at him, nodded, and he hit the special button on the dashboard that made the back doors of the truck open up. Tseng was already out his door, and stomping through the snow toward Cloud, and Reno hurried to be right beside him. "Oi oi, wolfie. Shitty place for a landing."

The wings unfurled, with enough force that Tseng and Reno both had to step clear of their vehement swing, and then Cloud was glaring up at them through the mask, hissing, but before he could leap upon either of them his gaze immediately turned to something beyond them. Reno glanced over his shoulder to see Melantha stepping through the snow, and she came up just behind the Turks, looking at him.

"I know you," she said, watching him. "You're scared and tired, aren't you? Come back with me. I'll keep you safe."

Cloud only remained kneeling in the snow, apparently ready to pounce at any time, and growled at her. But Melantha seemed to hear something, and shook her head.

"I'm not her, but I'm near enough to her for our purposes. And we have purposes, don't we?" She used a hand on Tseng's shoulder to straighten up, despite the howling wind, despite the cold. "Now, let's go back. Let's go back, and make things right again for all of us."

He shook his head, drew away from her, tried to pry the mask off his face again and fell over, screaming, the mask's distortion making it even less human, in a way that made Reno shudder. Melantha came closer, then, leaned down and touched a hand to his arm, and although Tseng and Reno both had their weapons out when Cloud's hand wrapped around her own... he did stop thrashing... calmed down... and for a few moments just lay there, panting, in the snow.

"I think he's done for now," Melantha said, straightening. "Let's get... Let's get him back."

"First thing's first," Tseng muttered, and while Cloud was still in the snow, he reached down and refastened the collar around Cloud's neck. Reno didn't know how he felt when he saw that, but he heard Cloud stifle another noise, and not even the mask's distortion could hide what it really was--a sob.

***

The ride back was quiet, and strange, and Reno didn't really care for it, for any of it. He was in the back with Cloud, as Tseng was driving and Melantha was sitting in the passenger's seat, doing whatever voodoo it was that she did to keep Cloud in check. As for Cloud, he was sitting curled up on the floor, and save for the glow of his eyes beyond the mask Reno would have no indication that he was awake.

"You still in there, kid?" Reno asked, quietly, knew that the sounds of the truck would drown it out between the truck bed and the driver's seat. The blue glow of Cloud's gaze turned toward him, and then Cloud nodded, slowly. "Yeah? You scared the shit outta me."

"...her, real?" Cloud managed, and Reno moved a little closer, careful not to touch the feathers on any of the wings, had no clue what to make of them.

"Real as you or me, yeah. Real in any other way, well... I have to admit I don't know all that's going on, but I can guess a bit." Reno reached over, and hesitated before touching the smooth, white metal of the mask. "I'm... I'm gonna try, okay? I'm sorry, but it's freaking me out." And he tugged, gently, and the mask came right off. Cloud gasped as if he had been drowning beneath it, and Reno set the mask aside before leaning down to touch his cheek. "There ya are, wolfie." He pushed his hand through Cloud's hair, combed through it, surprised that it was still so long and so clean and so soft like it was. "Hate to tell ya this, but I have no clue what mood he's gonna be in when we get back. Did ya really mean it, though? What you said, about him?"

"He... here," Cloud murmured, and tapped his left hand over his chest, over the scar.

"Like those feathers, huh?" Reno said, and Cloud nodded, his gaze growing more heavy-lidded. "Yeah... You rest up. We've got a bit farther to go before we get back to Midgar."

***

The cell was familiar, and at the very least Rufus hadn't forced him to go through that maze in the dark again. Cloud couldn't sit on the bunk, so sat curled up on the floor, chains and shackles and drugs keeping him from moving, from doing anything. The mask lay on the floor nearby, where it had fallen after he had thrown it at the wall.

When the door came open, there was no announcement, no gunshot, no anything, just the footfalls, the tap of the cane on the cold floor. He didn't come much closer, but he didn't have to. Cloud would hear him just fine, and they both knew it.

"Satisfied?" Rufus said. Cloud only glared at him, and Rufus shrugged, shook his head. "You should have listened to me. But you didn't, and now you're here, and I guess it's here you'll remain, since you've proven again that I can't trust you to do as you're told."

"What did you do to her?" Cloud said, and Rufus blinked, then grinned.

"Worried about her, are you? How very sweet. But it's really no concern of yours. We'll take you outside to deal with the monster before he causes any more trouble for all of us, and she'll make sure you do as you're told, and then we'll bring you back and put you in this cell, where you belong."

"And then what? Are you planning on just leaving me here, for the rest of my days?" He grinned back, sharp and vicious. "I thought we had something together."

Rufus walked closer to him, and raised his hand gripping the cane so tightly that Cloud just waited for the blow to fall... but it didn't, and Rufus lowered his cane, thumped the tip against the floor again. "If only I believed what came out of that pretty mouth of yours. But apparently all it's good for is biting the jugular, or giving fantastic blowjobs. I have plenty who will do either one of those things for me, so as sad as it will be to give that up, in the end it won't change a thing." He shook his head. "You didn't change a thing. And you could have, you realize, if you had just agreed to stay--if you had agreed to do as you were told, you would have been given more of that envied freedom you so desire. But you've given that up."

"What kind of freedom would that have been?" Cloud spat. "The same kind that drove Sephiroth over the edge?"

"Stubborn to the end..." Rufus ran his hand through his hair, looked down at him one more time, then turned to walk away. "This will be the last time we see each other." But Cloud laughed, and that made Rufus stop, turn partway to look at him.

"As if you could keep away," Cloud said. "You get off on grinding me under your heel. You'll be back, and you'll keep coming back."

"No, Strife," Rufus said. "In the end, you were just a tool... for him, for her, for me. And at the end, any businessman knows what to do with a tool that won't fulfill its function anymore." He started back out again. "Tseng will brief you on the mission, when we're ready."

The heavy door was shut, and he heard the locking mechanism. He simply closed his eyes, rested his head on his forearms.

***

The cell was dark and quiet for a long time. Even if he was to be given food, or drugs, or anything, Rufus seemed content to make him wait for it. Maybe he wanted Cloud to waste away, after all.

***

The door came open, but he didn't look up. He didn't really see a need to. But then he recognized the scent and the feel of his unannounced visitor, and he did look up, just in time to see Reno drop to his heels in front of him.

"It ain't the same, without you, wolfie," Reno said, and Cloud shrugged. "You're right... He ain't the same, without you. But he ain't gonna see that now that he's made up his mind." He took a deep breath, then said, "I been talking to the doc, off the record. Apparently what happened is that she was stationed in Junon when Sapphire attacked. Stayed behind to help some patients, got royally screwed up by the follow-up, and lost her family. She thought she was gonna die, but one of Hojo's proteges got to her first, and tried an experimental new procedure on her."

"Jenova cells," Cloud muttered, and Reno nodded.

"Without the Mako treatments, without everything else... but apparently she went stark raving mad up until your fight at the crater. After that she calmed down, went right back to being the mild-mannered doctor everyone knew her as, but apparently... she's gained an upper hand on those damn cells. Something to do with Meteor and Holy. That's why she can treat the SOLDIERs better than anyone else. She can kickstart their advanced healing just by friggin' touching them."

"Well isn't that lovely," Cloud said. "Good for her."

"Now now, wolfie, don't be so sour about a lady's good luck. She did what she did to bring ya back 'cause she had to. Without Shinra, she wouldn't be alive. Without Shinra, she wouldn't have the facilities to research what that bastard did to her. You know Rufus ain't above using such ties to keep someone close, and in any case, as a doctor, she likes being able to help people. She can do that here."

"None of this explains why the hell you've bothered to come down here," Cloud said. "I thought Tseng would come down to get me for the mission, when it was time."

"I told ya, I like wild things, didn't I?" Reno held up a key, then reached down and started undoing his shackles.

"What kind of trick is this?"

"Ain't a trick. I'm letting you loose. I'll probably get shot for this."

Something very much like panic filled Cloud's face. "But--you shouldn't--he'll be--"

"I'm one of his hounds. I do as I'm told. But nobody's told me I can't do this." The first one dropped with a satisfying clang onto the floor, which made Reno smile. "'Sides, took me a bit, but I realized later what the damn ice cream was for. Figured I'd repay the sentiment."

Cloud just stared at him, still amazed, and watched as the rest of the shackles were dropped. Reno stood up, then, backed away, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Try not to cause too much property damage on your way out, okay?" Reno said, still with that odd little smile on his face. "I've already talked with the doc. It'll be fine, no matter what he says, or tells her to do. Reeve's backing me on this, too--says the boss is miserable to try to work with lately."

"But..."

"You gonna give 'em time to react? Ain't like I turned off the cameras. Get goin'."

***

He ran out of the room, wings pulled in tight to reduce drag, but once he was out in the hallway he had to think of where to go, where to run. He was underground, after all. No matter what Reno said, he'd never get out without causing damage if he went straight up, which would be the most direct way. But if they were underground, then that meant the city's sewer system was nearby, too.

So he stopped thinking, and just let his body, his instincts, move for him. He took off running down the hallways, taking turns, stopped with a flap of two of his wings when he nearly ran through a door that had--nothing on the other side. He stopped, looked up, then down. It was one of the city's sewage shafts, all right, which meant that they used the underground facilities for maintenance, too. And that meant he could get out.

He jumped up into the shaft, grabbing a rung of an old, worn-down ladder that groaned underneath the sudden addition of his weight. He ignored it, started climbing up, occasionally using the wings to give him a boost upwards. When he reached the top of the shaft, he came up into a tunnel, one that ran alongside one of the old train tunnels. If the sound of the train through the wall wasn't enough, there was even another maintenance door, one that had TR N stenciled over it, with the A and I worn away by time. He opened the door, crawled out onto the maintenance platform alongside the track, and crouched down to wait. When he heard another train coming, he pulled his wings in tight, waited, waited for the driver's car to pass, waited for the final car--and when he saw it, he jumped, catching hold of the back of it and pulling himself up on top of the train, pressing himself down against the top.

The train moved out of the tunnel, into the open air, and with a soft laugh Cloud jumped up. This time, he could fly away.

So he did.

***

The air was cold, but with Sephiroth with him he was warm, and the cold wind was just heavenly. He was pretty sure he spent most of the time in the air just whirling about because he could, because he could feel the wind rake its fingers through his hair, and down his body, and somehow he knew that Aerith was there, too, and she was happy for him.

But he had something he had to do, still.

***

He alighted at Fort Condor. He called down to the watchers, the ones who kept an eye out for Shinra, or for the phoenix's return, or for the roving bands of monsters attempting to survive in the unceasing winter. He was hailed back, though the watchperson seemed confused until he jumped down from his perch, wings all gone for now.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you and yours, but I must ask a little of your kindness," he said, bowing his head, and the lady looked over her shoulder to her superior, who started with the, "Aren't you that Cloudy fellow--?" and he nodded, but kept his head low. "I've... had some difficulties over the past few years. Do you have a PHS unit I can use?"

"Well, no, but there's some Avalanche members here," the lady said, motioning him in. "Come in, come in--what were you doing up here, anyway? It's freezing this high up!"

And they insisted that before he saw anyone that he take a bath, that he changed clothes, that he eat a bowl of soup while they draped a towel over his shoulders to catch the water from his damp hair.

When the Avalanche member was brought up to the room where they had taken him, the young man stopped and stared, then pointed.

"But... Cloud Strife--sir--y-y-you're dead!"

"Nope, I've just been detained for a while," Cloud said with a grin. "Can you contact Vincent Valentine for me and let him know Fenrir's waiting for him at Fort Condor?"

The man seemed to recognize code when he heard it, but just nodded. After all, if this wasn't actually Cloud Strife, Valentine would know, and he would know how to handle it. So Cloud went back to his soup, and curled up on one of the bunks after, and sighed quietly, happily.

***

He woke up when he felt something standing over him, and his first instinct was to lash out. But a golden claw caught his arm, and he stared up at Vincent, who let him go, and then his face broke out into a grin and he held out his arms.

"Come here and give me a hug," he demanded, and Vincent didn't say a word, but he did just that.

***

"There was such a commotion at the complex, I figured you had to have been up to something," Vincent said. "But then everything grew quiet, very quiet, and Rufus was harder to work with than usual. We couldn't figure out what was wrong, and I couldn't exactly ask him. Reeve did a little digging, and encountered Reno, and found out what had happened."

"But they didn't tell you?"

"They had no way of contacting me at the time that wouldn't alert Rufus," Vincent said, with a shrug. "Still, how the hell did you get from there to here? Did you steal another bike?"

"...they didn't tell you everything, then," Cloud said, which made Vincent tilt his head with that slight frown of his, the one that he knew so well, and Cloud just looked at his bandaged arm, pulled the bandage loose and free--revealing a very human arm, heavily scarred, with a single number on the back of his hand, crisscrossed with old scars. There was still the faint light of Mako running along his veins, but it was far less than it had been. Cloud just looked up at Vincent, and said, "I found him. I found him at last."

Vincent said nothing for a time, then reached up, gripped Cloud's hair with his hand and pulled him forward... so he could hold him again. "Good."

***

"I honestly don't know what the others would think--what they will think--once they all know I'm back," Cloud said, standing up at the top of Fort Condor, in the watch tower area, looking out as the blizzard rolled on through. "I mean... I hope they'll be glad, but they'd already grieved me, moved on... and also, if they find out the truth, things could get very... ugly between Avalanche and Shinra."

Vincent, beside him, nodded. "I think they'll be more exasperated than anything else. And you could tell them something close to the truth--that you were injured, and this whole time you've been recovering."

"Nah, everyone knows I heal too quickly, they won't believe it," Cloud said. "But I can also tell them the truth, too... that I can't tell them what happened."

"Hmm. That won't satisfy them."

"Too bad. I don't want to sabotage all the hard work everyone has done in my absence, just to satisfy some petty sense of revenge." He laughed, reached underneath the collar of the sweater he was borrowing, and pulled out Rufus's collar. "I'm already getting mine, after all." Vincent looked at the collar with some alarm, but Cloud tucked it back out of sight. "As far as I know, it's some kind of tracking device. I want him to know I'm free, and that he can't pull me back this time. Nothing he does can pull me back. He's lost something, and he's going to have to deal with it."

Vincent nodded. "If we don't wait for support from the Shinra, though, the fight into the complex where our enemy is derailing all of our hard work... should get interesting."

"It should, but I think we can handle it." Cloud looked up at him. "You and me. And him. And her, too, in her own way."

"It's strange, having two allies that I cannot see or hear," Vincent said, but he didn't look too perturbed. "But coming from you, I believe it, regardless."

"Yeah... Shall we get going, then?"

Vincent nodded.

***

Cloud rode at Vincent's back, as he was using one of Cloud's golden chocobo to travel as quickly as possible around the world, without having to rely on roads or anything else. The bird's crest stood right up when he saw Cloud, and the chocobo handler couldn't stop him from running forward to butt his beak against Cloud's shoulder, cooing. Cloud grinned, pet his head, and then promised he wouldn't be gone for so long again. Then Vincent mounted, and Cloud got up behind him... and they rode.

They rode all the way down to the southern continent, the large island that had been protected from the rest of the world by a ridge of mountains, preventing all from seeing its earlier treasure--the Temple of the Ancients. That was long since gone, however, replaced by "research facilities" that had been taken over during the chaos following Meteor. It had been assumed that the place was lost to a monster infestation, but now they knew the truth.

They stopped along one of the mountain ridges, staring down below at the tropical forest that, even now, was covered with snow.

"That's the facility?" Cloud said, staring down at the blocky structures amidst the trees. "What the hell is he doing down there?"

"We're not certain, but it's enough to upset the Planet and prolong this winter." Vincent patted the chocobo's side. "Go, Takeyo. We'll call for you when we're ready. For now, be safe."

The gold chocobo ruffled his feathers at them, and then took off, disappearing quickly into the weather.

"Hopefully he's finding someplace warm," Cloud said, staring after him, then shook his head. "All right, so, originally..."

"Originally the Shinra and Avalanche were to provide forces to converge on the facility from all directions. A team of elites--our friends, and probably the Turks--would have penetrated defenses to move inside, find him, and eradicate him. Without the others supporting us, we'll need to rely on stealth--"

They both felt it, the sudden sensation of the hair on their napes standing up on end, and they both jumped aside as someone wearing a dark SOLDIER uniform and bearing a gigantic blade slammed into the ground where they had been standing, the sword cutting into the mountain as if it were nothing.

And although Cloud had been prepared, and he knew what to expect, when the cloud of disrupted snow settled and the man stood, he still felt the sickening disbelief welling up inside him.

"So much for stealth, huh?" And it was Zack's voice, Zack's cocky grin as he turned and looked up at Cloud. "I could feel you the instant you set foot on the island. It's been a long time, Spike."

"Y-you're not Zack," he forced out, and this not-Zack laughed... that same, open laugh.

"You're right. I'm not. Call me Teiral, instead." When Vincent suddenly drew his weapon and fired it, Teiral moved, so quickly Cloud had a hard time following the movement, as first he used the wide flat of the blade to deflect the bullet, then whirled it around to stab Vincent in the shoulder with it. Vincent bit back a sound of pain, dropped his handgun into the snow. "That isn't nice, firing on a man when his back is turned." He smirked, then turned back around to look at Cloud. "You wanna see the place? Then come with me." He pulled the blade free from Vincent's shoulder, watched with an amused expression as Cloud ran to Vincent's side. "Don't try using any of your magic here, Cloud. It'll blow up in your face, and that's the last thing your friend needs right now... right?"

"Right," Cloud said, shoving his hand against the wound. Vincent only nodded to him, and Cloud turned to look at this thing that was not Zack, could never be Zack. "All right, then."

***

The air changed as they descended down the mountainside. Cloud could feel it--despite the crisp thinness of the air throughout the rest of the planet, the air here felt heavy, oppressive somehow, and when they entered the tropical forest he was hit by how dark it appeared to be beneath the trees, with their canopies laden with snow. And there were monsters, or monstrous things--he hadn't felt anything quite like it before, but it twisted and turned and writhed just out of his sight.

"What the hell is going on, here?" he muttered, only to hear Teiral's chuckle beside them. But he didn't answer them, just continued escorting them through the trees until they reached the facility.

"It's really not so difficult," Teiral said, reaching out with a hand and just pushing the door open. "I haven't even bothered with locks."

But the inside of the facility was completely dark, and not even Cloud's enhanced vision could make out anything other than a strip of the floor of the hallway. Everything else--it was more of that darkness, that just writhed on the edge of his vision, but it seemed to be around the walls, clinging to the ceiling. He watched as a clump separated off from the ceiling, as if pulled down by gravity, but after it fell to the floor--without a sound, it simply sank into it.

"What's the matter? Never seen black Mako before?"

Cloud turned a glare to the impostor. "You damn well know we haven't."

"Well, you, of all people, probably don't want it touching you, though your friend probably wouldn't like the results if any of it nabbed him, either." He gestured inside with a flourish. "After you. Take care to stick to the center."

He nearly growled something else at Teiral, but grunted, moved on inside, still assisting Vincent. Teiral stayed at their backs, occasionally giving a direction if they reached an intersection of the hallways. They didn't go in very far before he told them to stop, and indicated the door to Cloud's left.

"Open it up, nice and easy," Teiral said, and Cloud left Vincent's side for a moment, cautiously approaching the door. Wary for some kind of trap, he put his hand to the handle, pulled it down, and carefully pushed the door open. There was a stairwell, with steps going both up and down... and more of that strange dark stuff sliding up and down the walls, though thankfully there seemed less of it there. "Down."

Cloud went back to Vincent's side, but they made it down the steps of a couple flights of stairs without any problems, though Cloud's brow furrowed when he saw more and more of the dark stuff slithering out from the door at the bottom. Teiral told him to open it, just like he did the other, and Cloud did so, only to see what looked like the ruined remains of a lab... and Mako chambers, lines of them, a few of them closed and filled with the black Mako.

The door slammed shut behind them, with the click of a lock. Cloud's head whipped around, but just in time to see Teiral coming at them, cutting between them with his body and flinging out his arms to separate them, pushing them to either side--and where he let Cloud stagger back, he kept a grip on Vincent, who he whirled about bodily in the air and then slammed into the ground. Cloud started to run forward, but Teiral had a blade out and to Vincent's chest in a moment.

"Don't try, Cloud." He stood up, dragging Vincent along with him, and Cloud just heard the faintest grunt of pain, frustration, before his friend's body went limp. Teiral walked up to one of the empty Mako chambers and shoved Vincent in, before closing it. "Your friend's kinda cool, isn't he? Former Turk, sniper, and honest-to-gods demon all rolled up in one. You sure can pick 'em, kiddo."

"How do you know anything about us?" Cloud said, straightening, and Teiral looked over at him with that same damn smile.

"You don't get vomited out of the Lifestream without picking up a few things. Isn't that right, Spike? I hear you're a veritable fountain yourself, the number of times you've been dunked. It really is amazing you're human at all. Of course, then again, you're not, not really." He shrugged, leisurely. "But who among the three of us is?" Teiral turned toward him, then, began walking toward him with a deliberation that, from Zack's body, was terrifying. Cloud didn't realize he was backing away until his back hit one of the other Mako chambers, and he could tell it was one of the full ones, could feel the maddening black claws of angry, vengeful souls clawing at the glass, trying to reach him. He didn't realize he was shaking, closing his eyes and covering his ears with his hands, until Teiral was in front of him, arms on either side of him, leaning down so his forehead was against Cloud's. Cloud's eyes flew open with a gasp, and saw Teiral smirk.

"You're the only one I feel like I owe any answers to, Spike. We're brothers, anyway, and it'll make it all the sweeter when it's time for us to tear the rest of this Planet apart."

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about," Cloud ground out between grit teeth, and Teiral laughed, leaned in, one of his hands easily prying Cloud's hand away from his ear. Teiral just tilted his head to the side, then, and whispered into his ear, into him.

"Jenova made us what we are. Jenova, and the damn Planet's own fear, own anger. You were so close to warping, it's almost a pity you got out from that place... but then, I guess the two of them were protecting you. They can't reach you, here." He felt a warm tongue slide along the shell of his ear, and shuddered. "But I can."

"Zack, no..." And he hadn't even heard the words escape from his throat before he heard Teiral laughing, a laugh that was like Zack's but--unhinged, wild, and Teiral slammed his hand down over a button on the Mako chamber's control panel, opening it up. His hand came around Cloud's throat and tossed him up, into the chamber, before shutting it closed again, and he watched as Cloud's form got swallowed up by the darkness. Gloved hands clawed at the glass, feet kicked out, Cloud's whole body lashed out, and Teiral's grin grew even wider when he saw the panicked push of wings against the glass.

***

The initial rush of black Mako was just as terrible as any other time he'd been trapped in one of these damned chambers, but instead of searing him with heat before fading into a strange chill, this went straight for the chill, freezing up his whole body. Or at least, it felt as though he was freezing, though he struck out with his hands, with his feet. He felt dark claws rake down his back and he screamed as the wings unfurled, struggling against the chamber walls to break out, to stretch fully, to be free. Worst of all, through the inky blackness he could still see hints of the outside world, the empty chamber where Vincent lay unconscious, and--and that impostor standing outside the chamber, grinning up at him.

Cloud screamed, but that just allowed the stuff to dive straight inside, and the black claws wormed their way inside and then began sliding along his organs, under his skin, wrapping around his spine and all the way up into his brain. They were impossibly wrathful, and worst yet was the slow chant under it all, to just destroy everything. The Planet had betrayed them, their own kind--monster or human, they weren't really that different--had betrayed them, had left them to die, buried under concrete or drowned underneath snow or eaten alive by creatures or sent to fight in a fruitless war or burned to death in a mountain town or sliced down by a sword from some terrorist who thought he could save the Planet--

And underneath it all, beneath all the layers of rage, he could hear the female laughter of Jenova. It wasn't her, of course, but echoes of her, still carrying throughout the waves of black Mako, rippling out and bouncing around, continuing to stir them into a frenzy.

His eyes clenched shut--they burned so badly he was surprised they weren't melting in their sockets--and he curled up on himself, drawing his wings around him to try to protect himself, but it wasn't any use.

They were inside him now.

***

"I mean, what's the point? You live, you eat, you screw if you're lucky, and then you die. Maybe you die happy, more than likely you die miserable, and better yet, the damn Planet doesn't give a flying fuck about a single one of us."

He opened his eyes to see he was in darkness, a familiar darkness that he recognized from before, and he clapped his arms around his naked body as he looked around, saw Teiral standing behind him. He was still wearing the First Class uniform, and watching Cloud with that strange gleam in his eyes.

"Forget all that shit about returning to the Planet, taking your experiences back into the Lifestream and enriching the life of the Planet," Teiral said. "In the end, our lives are little more than that of an ant's to us. We're just little specks, little fleas, and the Planet thinks it's eradication time. And we're tired of this, of this bullshit, and even though Jenova's gone, she did leave behind one tool that we could use. Me."

"How did she...?" Cloud started, as Teiral came closer. This time he didn't back down, didn't step away, but then he knew it would be of no use in this space. There was no beginning or end, no place to hide, just the darkness, spreading out forever.

"We clung to the two of you like life rafts when you ran from under Nibelheim," Teiral said. "That moment of agony, on the bluff, the pain of both your lives, and the power that Jenova had over you, and then over that Zack's body, made it easy enough for her to reconstruct something like Zack for her own purpose. Because you know, what else are we ever used for but tools?" He spat. "But the body gave us a chance. A chance to to wreak our havoc, to do as we wanted, as we've been wanting. I've just been down here, eating away at the Lifestream bit by bit, pulling more and more into the fold. Eventually, there'll be nothing left. When humanity dies out, there's gonna be a great wave of us pouring right in, and we'll be unstoppable. The Planet will die. We'll tear it to shreds."

"And what, after that?" Cloud asked. "What do you do, once you've attained your revenge?"

"What do you think, Spike?" Teiral said, hands on hips. "We tear ourselves apart, naturally."

"Well, since you seem to be well on your way to getting what you want, why bother with me at all?"

"I told you. We're brothers, aren't we? And that bastard wasn't off, when he called you Fenrir. You can fell gods. You will fell this Planet."

"I'm not going to do anything like that," Cloud said with a shake of his head. "I'm not going to give in to this black Mako, and I'm not going to let you use me!"

"Doesn't matter what you think, what you say," Teiral said, stepping closer and putting a hand over the scar on Cloud's chest. "You can even tear me apart, if you want. But we've already touched you. We marked you a long time ago. And that hole in your heart, that you felt growing wider and wider of the years..." Teiral shook his head. "Eventually it'll devour you whole."

"So whaddya say, kiddo?" And suddenly Zack was leaning against the wall, and they were standing in the SOLDIER training facility, and he was just a kid, wearing a trooper's uniform that was a little big on him. And Zack gave him that grin. "Wanna get some dinner out tonight, instead of that shit in mess?"

He was still nervous, still suspicious of this friendship that Zack had offered to him, without strings attached, without expectations that he be anything other than himself. But... he hadn't had food that wasn't from the mess hall in so long, and Zack had helped him a few times. He seemed like someone he could trust.

***

Strong hands, holding him down, trapping him, and things were moving and he was in tears. It hurt, everything hurt, just like that time--and he had tried saying no, and tried saying stop, and Zack had told him he didn't really mean it, that he wanted this, wanted to be fucked just like this, by him, by a hot-shot First Class, he had seen the way Cloud had been mooning over Sephiroth, sneaking out after curfew to watch the Commander during his own private training times--

And suddenly the door came open, and Sephiroth was standing there. Zack looked surprised, and Cloud stifled a sob, before Sephiroth strode beside the bunk and hurled Zack from off on top of him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he growled, and Zack picked himself up, grinned at the Commander--but it was different. Zack suddenly looked very different, even though he was the same.

"Don't tell me _you_ don't wanna destroy the world, big guy," Zack said with a laugh, and Sephiroth seemed to pull Masamune out from nowhere.

"I won't allow you to touch him. He's _mine_."

Cloud felt even more confused, curled up on the bunk and clenched his eyes shut and covered his head. And then just as suddenly he was in Nibelheim, on his bed in the small house he shared with his mother, and she was standing in the kitchen with a young lady in a pink dress, and Cloud uncurled to find himself back in his First Class uniform, and he was... himself again? What had just happened?

"Mama?" he said. "...Aerith?"

And the two of them looked over at him, and Aerith came down the steps leading into the kitchen to fling her arms around him.

"There you are! Just stay here for a little bit."

"Yes, seems like your hero has a little crush on you," his mother said, with a teasing flip of her hand, and Cloud felt his face burning bright red.

"What... What's going on?"

Aerith sank back on her heels. "...that one, the frightening one, that looks like Zack. He pitched you into the black Mako where he thought we couldn't reach you."

"That... that wasn't Zack?" Cloud said.

"Hells no, Spike. I'm shocked you even think I'd... ugh." And the voice came from the door, and he looked up as Zack came in. Zack scratched the back of his head. "It's... really... I've actually not been this angry in a long time. Seeing some shithead like that, looking like me, trying to warp you just like him..." He walked beside him, plopped his hand in Cloud's hair, grinned at him. "You know, you done good, Cloud."

Cloud smiled up at him, then, grinned and wrapped his arms around him. "It _is_ you. You dork."

"Cookies are done!" his mother said from the oven, and they all looked up as she carefully pulled the cookie sheet out with her oven mitts. "Chocolate chip. I'm really impressed I can still do this."

"Your memories," Aerith said, poking Cloud in the arm. "It's... You, and your strength, and your ability to stay yourself, no matter what... That's what allows us to stay here with you. And now... it's our turn to protect you. He can't keep up the barrage forever. You'll wake up, and you'll be free."

"And in the meantime, there are cookies," his mother said. "And no more talk of that. I want to hear more about his handsome boyfriend."

***

Cloud woke up and lashed out at once, and there was a great shattering of glass and the spread of wings and Mako of all colors—red, yellow, blue, purple, green—flying out from the chamber. Teiral just stood there, staring at him in disbelief, and Cloud jumped down in front of him before hitting him full on in the face with a fist.

"That's for Zack," he said as Teiral staggered back. He ran up to him, then, grabbed him by the fabric of his top, and punched him again, this time in the gut. "That's for Aerith." He turned around and flung him, against the wall, watching as black Mako scattered away from the impact site. "That's for Vincent."

"Now who's living for revenge?" Teiral said, pushing himself back out of the wall. He rubbed at his jaw, then grinned. "What, you think a few punches are gonna make up for any of our sins?"

"No sins," Cloud said, "just... trying to twist my memories against me. Trying to twist my friends against me. You're right, you and the others--I am Fenrir, but the one I'm going to kill is you."

"Then prove it," Teiral said. "Fuckin' try to prove it."

***

Rather than turning to Teiral and fighting him outright, Cloud turned to the mass of black Mako swirling about the edges of the room, and jumped right in. He heard Teiral shout, but the colored Mako from before came diving back out of the ground, in greater numbers, and began threading through the black. Instead of being overwhelmed, the colors spread, and spread, lighting up the facility with their glow, transforming the black Mako. Teiral began screaming. As Cloud could feel the others doing their work, he turned, and jumped at Teiral for one final attack.

Teiral scattered, his body melting away into black Mako, and that frantically trying to reach Cloud, reach him, one last bid at corruption. When Cloud touched them with his fingertips, they, too, melted away into color, dissipating as if they'd never existed at all. Cloud breathed out, then turned and ran to the chamber were Vincent was being held. He hit the release button on the chamber controls, and lifted Vincent into his arms while the light surrounding them grew blindingly bright. The amount of Mako in the area--all the black Mako converting--was growing dangerously high, and Cloud stood in the middle of the room, and looked up.

"Just... give me one more hand," he breathed, and closed his eyes before jumping straight up.

***

The geyser of Mako was seen all over the Planet--even up at Icicle Inn they claimed to see a glow on the horizon.

***

Cloud felt himself pushed upward, and the facility crumbled down around them. He cradled Vincent close and just shot upward, carried by the currents of Mako, before the spirits began spreading throughout the sky, into the clouds of snow that had covered the whole Planet. Cloud just waited there in the sky, watching as the clouds banked back, pushed away by streams of light, leaving only the white clouds of a fair day. And the Mako rained back down, going back into the earth, into the Planet, where it belonged, where it could create new life.

"I guess that's mission accomplished," he said, and looked down at Vincent. "Or... almost..."

***

He carried Vincent to Cosmo Canyon, though he was careful to land outside, and hide the wings. He was unsurprised when Takeyo the gold chocobo came running up, looking a little worn out but happy all the same, perhaps even proud for keeping up with him when Takeyo couldn't fly. They walked into Cosmo Canyon, where the villagers were still staring in awe at the sky, or at the Cosmo Candle, which was burning high in the sky, higher than it had in years.

"This man needs medical attention!" Cloud called, and one of the villagers saw him, then grabbed the villager next to her and turned her around to face him, pointing. Cloud heard a familiar roar from above, and looked up to see Nanaki staring down at him from one of the canyon ledges. "No wrestling yet, Nanaki, not until Vincent's better."

And the villagers took Vincent to their infirmary, where one of the elders patched up his wounds. Vincent was up again shortly after, grumbling about how a scratch like that shouldn't have taken him down, until Cloud pointed out he was lucky he could still use an arm. And then they were dragged to Bugenhagen's old observatory, where Nanaki was waiting for them, with his tail lashing, and demanded to hear what had happened, and why Cloud was gone for so long.

"If you don't mind me glossing over a few things," Cloud said, with a shrug.

***

It was still too perfect, too neatly wrapped up, and of course news that one of the leading members of Avalanche, previously thought deceased, was in fact alive spread like wildfire. Avalanche had a celebration at Seventh Heaven in Midgar--it was closed out for the night, with the only exception being the original members. Not even significant others were allowed, which secretly relieved Cloud because that meant any interaction with Shinra was staved off for a little bit longer.

He didn't tell the others everything. He couldn't. But he told them he'd been trapped in the Lifestream for some time, and that was how he'd discovered about Teiral and the black Mako. He washed up, nearly frozen to death, near Fort Condor, and tried to revive himself and survive until he could reach the fort, where he contacted Vincent. And then there was no time to waste.

"I'm just so relieved you're back," Tifa said, leaning back into her chair at the end of the retelling. "Though... are you okay? I mean..."

"Is it the hair? It's the hair, isn't it." Cloud ran a hand through it, managing to look embarrassed, but Yuffie shook her head.

"No, it's the eyes. It's definitely the eyes."

"Exposure to the Mako, is all we can figure out, for such an extended period of time," Cloud said, shrugging. "Honestly, it really is a miracle I haven't... lost myself entirely. But I think we can thank Aerith for that."

"That girl..." Cid picked up his drink, took a sip, frowned at it when he realized it was his last. He thumped it back down on the table. "She's still looking out for us. How the hell can we ever repay her for that?"

"Live your lives," Cloud said. "It's... It's what she wants."

"Hells, if anyone knows, it'd be you," Barret said, and lifted up his glass. "To Aerith."

"To Aerith, and to life," Cloud said, and the others nodded in agreement as they raised their glasses, then downed them.

Oddly enough, no one seemed to mind or notice when eventually Vincent and Cloud disappeared upstairs to one of the spare bedrooms. And they heard the others eventually stagger to their beds, and that was fine. Cloud slept in Vincent's arms, and throughout his own body he could feel Sephiroth, pleased and humming in his cells. Or at least, Cloud tried to sleep, but long after the rest of the sounds in the building had ceased... except for Barret's and Cid's snoring, not to mention some of Yuffie's... there was a sound at the window.

Cloud woke up fully, and he could feel when Vincent shifted into full wakefulness, and they exchanged a look before getting off the bed. Cloud bothered to pull on a pair of pants before going to the window and looking down, to see Reno, smoking, looking up at the window. He frowned, then raised the window, resting his arms on the sill and leaning out just a bit.

"Evenin'!" Reno said. "You got time to talk?"

"Don't know," Cloud said. "Guess it depends on the talking."

"Yeah, yeah," Reno drawled. "I see how it is. Well, I'd appreciate it. Oh, hey, Vince."

Vincent, standing at Cloud's shoulder, just stared down as well, then looked to Cloud. "You don't owe them anything."

"I know I don't," Cloud said with a grin.

"Aww, c'mon," Reno said. "Just a talk."

"Hmm." Cloud rested his head on a hand. "Whatcha gonna give me if I do come down, Turk?"

At that, Reno grinned right back. "I'd say a blowjob, but I get the feeling Valentine might shoot me."

Vincent made a soft, considering noise, then looked down as Cloud looked up at him. They left the window, and Cloud pulled on a top and a jacket, and Vincent pulled on some clothes as well, and they both went down. Reno was still waiting for them outside, and they weren't surprised when they saw Rude standing at another point on the street, but the tall bald Turk wasn't looking at them.

"Just making sure there ain't any interruptions," Reno said with a shrug.

"So what the hell do you want now?" Cloud said. "And why the hell should I even bother to listen?"

"Heh... Because." Reno shoved his hands in his pockets. "I know it ain't like the others could give you a complete Shinra update in there... woulda brought down the party, talking business like that. But if Cait Sith had the chance, he'd probably tell ya that Rufus seems to be faring better. And I'd tell ya that he has a thing of yours, and he wants to return it."

"A thing..." Cloud blinked, and then felt the strangest, familiar sensation of a hilt in his right palm. "...the Ultima Weapon?"

"Might be a thing like that, yeah," Reno said. "Not happening tonight, obviously. Don't wanna keep you away from 'celebrations.' But he wanted to make sure we caught you before you skip town again."

"Okay, if not tonight, then when?"

"Why not tomorrow? I know ya don't want anything to do with him, and ain't like any of us are going to disagree with you about it. But he wants to do this thing, and that way it's done and over with."

Cloud watched Reno quietly for a long moment, then finally said, "All right, but I'm bringing Vincent with me."

"Not a problem." Reno nodded to both of them, then turned and sauntered off, saying something to Rude as they slunk off into the night.

***

They arrived at the Shinra complex the next morning, after Tifa had given the entire crew a big breakfast and they saw the others off to the Highwind. They stopped at the gate, spoke with one of the guards who waved them through, and hadn't gotten far before Cloud saw Tseng walking toward them from the main building. He stopped, waiting for Tseng to come to them, and felt his shoulders relax when he felt Vincent standing at his back... not too close, but close enough for him to feel his comforting presence.

"Strife, Valentine, it's good to see you both. We were relieved to hear that you were well, after all, Strife." And Tseng nodded to them both as he met them. "The President is having a meeting, but by the time we arrive at his office he should be finished, or close enough to it. Come with me."

And Cloud was pretty certain Tseng's dark eyes stared at him an instant longer than was strictly necessary, but he turned and led the way back to the complex's main building. Cloud felt his stomach turn at first, at the familiar sight of the halls, but he halted a single step so he fell in line with Vincent, and sometimes their hands would touch, briefly, and that made him feel better. Cloud ignored the looks he got, as other people recognized the long hair, the glowing blue eyes, as being far-too-similar to that special operative, but no one said a thing. He wasn't certain if it was a relief or not.

When they got to Rufus's office, Tseng spoke briefly with the young Turk standing outside, then knocked on the door before sliding his passcard to make the door open. He stood aside and motioned Cloud and Vincent in, then followed them in, standing at the door with his hands clasped behind his back.

The sight of Rufus affected Cloud more strongly than even the hallways had, the looks from the employees had, and he drew up short, not wanting to come any closer. And Rufus was resting his head on one hand as he was scribbling something down on a piece of paper--though what exactly it was would be hard to tell. Then Rufus looked up, set the pen down, and looked at them.

"...It..." And though he started to say something, he stopped, then nodded before trying again. "I'm glad that you're safe."

Cloud nodded. "Thank you."

"I... was worried when I'd heard what had happened--when I saw the Mako, in the skies, coming back down to the earth." Rufus seemed uncertain what to do with his hands, for once, and finally settled on clasping them in his lap. "That you and Valentine had gone on ahead, to deal with that threat... really, all I can say is 'thank you.' So... Sincerely, on behalf of the entire company, and from myself personally, I thank you for what you've done."

He couldn't help himself--the words came out before he could bite them back. "You know I didn't do it for you."

Rufus's own expression changed, subtly, but he nodded. "I am... well aware of that, Strife. But that doesn't mean I can't be grateful for what you've done. Admittedly, it's somewhat more difficult to run a corporate empire if the Planet wastes away. Bad for profits."

"So glad that the Shinra caught up on that," Cloud said. "Now why the hell have you really asked us to come out here?"

And then Rufus surprised him by laughing. It was sudden, and even Rufus seemed surprised by it, but he didn't stifle it, either, before he shook his head. "It's you, all right. I'm glad to see that everything that's happened hasn't taken away your bite."

"Glad too that I can still amuse you," Cloud snapped, and Rufus waved his hand, before standing up.

"You're right. Why stand on ceremony? Actions are better." Rufus walked to one of the walls, close to the line of windows that overlooked Midgar, and stopped, turning to look at Cloud. "There's just one thing I would ask for. I know I'm in no position to do such a thing, but... the collar. Give it back."

"What, you mean you don't want to follow me wherever I go?"

"Sometimes you go places where I could never dare follow," Rufus said. "Despite everything I do have, I'm still just a man. Now, please. I know you despise it, in any case."

Cloud glared at him for a few moments longer, then reached up to the collar of the sweater he wore, pulled it down to reveal the leather band with its diamond tag that Rufus had put around his neck. He tugged it off with another snap, watching as the locking mechanism broke for the last time, and then held it out for Rufus to take. Rufus did, and stepped back, nodding and looking away immediately before reaching up and hitting some hidden switch on the wall. That portion of the wall slid back, then away, revealing an alcove on the other side... where Ultima Weapon was hung, like a trophy. Rufus backed away from the wall, gesturing to it.

"It's all yours."

Cloud looked at Rufus suspiciously a moment longer, before checking back over his shoulder to see Tseng and Vincent hadn't moved, were watching the whole exchange quietly. Then he nodded to Rufus, stepped up to the wall, and set his hand around the hilt. The feel of it was so familiar and comfortable in his hand, it had only ever been rivaled by the Buster Sword, and he lifted it up carefully, before gripping it with both hands, giving an experimental swing. Then he nodded, and twirled it before setting it to his back, listening as the magnetized harness clicked it in place. The weight at his back was comfortable, familiar, and he nodded again before turning to look at Rufus, who was still watching him quietly, gaze shuttered off again.

"Thank you for keeping it safe." And he started back toward Vincent, only for Rufus to say to his back, "I was wrong."

He whirled to face Rufus with a snarl. "You damn well better know that you were wrong!"

Rufus glanced up at Tseng, nodded, and Cloud looked over his shoulder to see Tseng leaving the room. Vincent, however, stayed put, and Cloud returned his attention, and his own glare, straight back to the Shinra President.

"What more do you have to say to me?" Cloud said. "What more can you say to erase all the humiliation and pain you've put me through?"

"I... I can't."

"Then shut up and let me go!"

"I... can't do that, either." And Rufus glanced at Vincent, as if measuring if he had the capability of speaking about this in front of the other man, but Vincent did not move. So his gaze went back to Cloud. "And I don't mean--physically--obviously. I can't hold you. Others would tell me I don't deserve it, in any case. Maybe I don't. What's done is done, and I can't change that, but..." He stepped forward, cautiously, as if he really was approaching a wild animal. "But I know it was wrong. I knew it, then, but I didn't care. And after Meteor fell... I kept not caring, until you made it so completely, absolutely obvious that you would never allow yourself to be controlled." He ran a hand through his hair, gripping it tightly and looking away--a move so familiar that Cloud almost wondered if it was conscious on Rufus's part, or not. "And Reno tried to tell me that it wasn't good, for either of us, what I started to do to you to try to control you."

"Well, he's still alive, so after he let me go you didn't kill him on the spot." Cloud crossed his arms. "That's good to know."

"I couldn't. You see, Reno is one of my hounds... and that means dragging me away from endangering myself. And that was what I was doing, I was just being too stubborn to see it."

"So what made you start to care?" Cloud asked, and Rufus's gaze was still averted.

"Reno, telling me. And then, Tseng's opinion on the matter, which was that I should just have you gunned down and dead... and it was tempting for all of a moment before I realized that doing that would give me nothing, nothing, in the long run... only regret." He straightened, gestured to the windows. "I already have enough regret, Strife. I'm going to be working on it for the rest of my days, I'm almost sure of it."

"So you spared me so you wouldn't feel badly about it the rest of your life?" Cloud said, and Rufus shook his head.

"No, I let you run away, and I didn't bother following you, because I realized I was regretting... it. Everything. Plan Dea was a mistake, a giant mistake made by a teenager with too much power, but I refused to see it because it would mean admitting that there was something I couldn't have... and something that I was completely wrong about. Reno, Reeve, and even Dr. Melantha, cooperated to ensure that you got out without interference. When I had them up here in my office, I threatened to shoot the lot of them for conspiring against me." The pale blue gaze shifted, looked to the polished desk nearby, with its neat stacks of paper and computer terminals, and his PHS unit beside his pen. "They told me something I hadn't wanted to hear. But they were right."

Rufus took a deep breath, and bowed his head. "So, I guess what I'm trying to say is... I'm sorry. I don't expect you to ever forgive me, let alone forget what I've done. But I wanted to tell you, too..." Another deep breath. "I was wrong, and I am sorry, but I don't regret some of those times at all. They were... everything I wanted, and more. But I ask you to please not allow my mistakes to spoil the relationship that Avalanche and Shinra have both cultivated since your disappearance."

Cloud shook his head. "Of course not, but... I don't know what more you expect to get out of me."

"Nothing," Rufus promised. "Absolutely nothing."

He watched Rufus, wary of any traps, verbal or otherwise, but no traps seemed to spring at the words. Cloud just nodded and started for the door, Vincent following behind him like some strange crimson ghost, and when Cloud glanced over his shoulder he saw Rufus had turned around to look out the windows.

***

Cloud couldn't sleep that night. He was too agitated, and even though they were camping in Aerith's church in the Sector Five ruins, the presence of the flowers and the Buster Sword couldn't soothe him. He took to pacing, while Vincent watched him from their shared bedroll.

"If it bothers you this much, then I think we're going to have to enforce a strict 'No Shinra-Related Activities' rule," Vincent said. Cloud didn't say anything, and Vincent asked, "Was it seeing him again? Or was it that he actually apologized?"

"Yes," Cloud said, still pacing. "All of it... it just rubs me the wrong way somehow."

"After what he put you through, I think everything about it would rub you the wrong way." He was quiet for a moment, then said, "At some point, if you want to move past it, if you don't want this strangeness, you'll have to let it go."

"Hojo was easy enough to get revenge on," Cloud said. "He was a danger to everyone, everything. But Rufus--godsdammit, outside of how he was treating me, he actually seems to have been doing his job competently since he got pulled out from the rubble." He stopped. "That's it. It's the collar that bothers me. Why would it matter to him, now, that he get it back?"

But Vincent had no answer for him, and he got into the bedroll with him, and they curled up together and Cloud watched the wave of the blossoms in the moonlight until he fell asleep.

***

They rode Takeyo westward. Snow from the long winter still covered the mountains, having not had the chance to thaw yet, but it didn't slow them down either. They just wove their way between the mountains until they saw the familiar black peaks of the Nibel range, and then went still further.

Nibelheim had been abandoned after Meteor, Vincent had told him. All the Shinra actors left, and so there had been no one to tend to the town that entire time. The buildings still stood, but as Cloud stood in the town circle and looked at all of them, he saw that they were all in terrible condition.

"Probably got used by monsters as dens, until the winter drove them away from up here entirely," he said, frowning, and started toward the small house, the smallest one, close to the steps that led up to the ruins of the Shinra Mansion. The door knob came off when he touched it, and the hinges had rusted to the point he feared they would snap if he wasn't careful, but he shoved the door open and stepped inside. The furniture was ruined, the back door no longer existed from all he could see, and a number of the windows were broken. His boots crunched on snow and broken glass as he walked in, stared at it all, and finally found a stool in the kitchen and sat down on it.

Vincent eventually followed him inside. "The Shinra Mansion's on its last legs, as well. I wouldn't be surprised if an avalanche had crushed the entire back portion. At this point, one more good harsh storm from the other direction will send the rest of it down."

Cloud nodded. "Is it weird? To feel any affection for this place at all."

"Home is still home," Vincent said with a shrug, standing behind him and placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know what you were thinking, but..."

"Yeah. Too much for us to do." Cloud stood up, and pulled out his PHS unit, checking for the signal before speed-dialing a number that caused Vincent's brows to rise out of surprise. There was an exclamation of expletives from the other side, but Cloud only waited before saying, "Yeah, it's me. Is your boss around?"

"What the hell, Strife. Thought you were just fine leaving things be."

"You know me. I've gotta be a pain in the ass at all times, at least for the Shinra," he said with a grin, and heard a snicker on the other side.

"All right, all right. Lemme see if he's still working..." And there was a pause, though as Cloud listened he could hear a knock, some voices conversing, and then there was another voice on the phone entirely.

"To what do I owe this surprise?" And ah, there was that iciness that Cloud knew so well.

"I found it. I found something that you could help me do."

"And what would that be? I'm not feeling up to slitting my own throat this evening."

"Nothing like that. Think you can spare some attention away from Midgar just long enough to help me out with Nibelheim?"

A pause, before Rufus answered, "That place was destroyed by the winter, Strife, and I'd always assumed that the Shinra reproduction had made you bitter."

"Home is still home," Cloud echoed, looking up at Vincent. "I know Avalanche helped out with Gongaga and a couple of the other poorer spots around the Planet. Surely you could help me out with this?" He paused, then said, "And... I'll consider accounts settled."

"You said it yourself, nothing would repay that."

"Yeah. But someone told me at some point I'd have to let it go. If I had my home back... maybe I could."

A long pause, and then, "I'll have Reeve fly out to look at it and make a report. I'm not saying yes yet, Strife--Midgar is going to take years to clean up, and I need what manpower I still have."

"Understood." He hesitated, since saying any kind of good-bye still felt awkward, but then the question popped out before he could stop it. "Why did you want the collar back?"

"...It's a reminder." And the phrase was loaded, and Cloud knew he could ask what kind of reminder, what Rufus was using it to remind him of, but then realized he was just as well off not knowing.

"Understood," he repeated. "Thank you for your time." And he flipped the unit shut before he could hear any kind of response, tucked it away, leaned back against Vincent, felt Vincent's arms come around him. "You're right... holding onto it... will be just as bad as him trying to hold onto me, won't it?"

"Mm."

***

Reeve arrived the following day via helicopter, being escorted by Elena and Rude, and Rude told Cloud that he owed Tifa a phone call to explain what was going on. Cloud just grinned at him, then led Reeve around the ruins of the town, answering his questions about things.

"We have the old reconstruction plans, of course," Reeve said, as Cloud led him up the steps and turned back around to look at the ruined circle. "But I wanted to make sure it didn't look like just a reconstruction. I want to make sure it looks like your home." He looked at Cloud, stroking his beard. "You realize, it will just all go bad again if no one else actually lives here, don't you?"

"You let people know there's free housing to be had, they'll come." Cloud shrugged. "Or they won't. I'll handle that, if you can just get the buildings up."

Reeve nodded. "...I think we can manage that."

***

Apparently Rufus approved the expenses, and Tifa hired some help at the Seventh Heaven so she could come out to help. They all got to work--the three of them, and then hired hands from Rocket Town, Cosmo Canyon, and even as far south as Gongaga.

And then Cait Sith showed up, with his oversized Mog companion, and set the Mog to working while Cait Sith could answer any questions they had about Reeve's plans.

It took time. These things always did, but Cloud hadn't felt very cognizant of changes in time for a while anyway, so he didn't mind. It was amusing hearing the talk, too, of some of the helpers, talking about how their kids always talked about moving away, but Midgar was too far, maybe they'd like it here. And Tifa said she'd try to get in touch with the people she remembered from Nibelheim, who had left the town before it had been burned to the ground, who might want to come back. There was some consternation about the Shinra Mansion ruins and the sizable graveyard that occupied a part of Nibelheim, but Tifa denied there were actually any ghosts and Cloud let her. If some of the superstitions of Nibelheim died out, that could only be a positive change. Probably.

***

He sat up on one of the ledges of the mountain, and he felt, rather than saw, the black leather boots, the drape of the black leather coat. The hand that touched his hair was familiar, and he smiled as he looked down toward Nibelheim.

"Isn't it nice?" he asked. "Look. I think Mama would be proud."

_"She is."_

"Heh. And, what about you?" He leaned back, looked upward, saw that pale green gaze looking down at him. "You said..."

_"I know. But I am content enough where I am, for now."_

"Cloud?" It was Tifa's voice, behind him, and as he turned the dark shadow disappeared, and he grinned at her.

"Are you headed out?"

"Yeah. Rude says the drinks just aren't as good without me around." She sat down beside him. "It was weird, without you... you know, right?"

He nodded. "It still doesn't feel real."

"Hmm. But Vincent says you're doing all right. And he seems happy enough to stay around and keep an eye on you." She coughed. "I did notice the one large bed getting moved into your new house."

He couldn't help but laugh.

***

He did go back to Midgar once a year, to visit Tifa (and increasingly, Rude, which was still odd but Rude had some kind of respect for him and he had to respect Rude or else Tifa would punch him in the face), and to visit the flower patch and the Buster Sword. He asked Aerith one time if he could take a few flowers back with him, and she had giggled and said of course, and so he took some of the flowers back to Nibelheim, and started a patch of them there. They seemed hardy enough to survive the harsher Nibelheim winters, anyway.

And Reno would find him, inevitably, and tease him, and try to talk him into a one-night stand. And, sometimes, Cloud said yes, and other times he just ignored the Turk and threatened him with Vincent.

But he never went near the Shinra complex, which had grown, and he was fine with that.

***

"Shit, shit, shit," Reno said over the PHS unit, "we need you out here, and we need you _now_."

"Do you?" Cloud said, and Reno cursed.

"Do you think I'm making this shit up? Tifa and Rude are out there fighting it and they can't stop it--it came out from one of the geothermal well thingies, hell, I don't--"

Cloud flipped the PHS unit shut, and looked up to see Vincent already heading toward his stable, retrieving two of his gold chocobo.

***

The monster was real, all right, some kind of mixture between a giant earthworm and a land dragon, and it was attempting to ruin Sector Six, which the Shinra had finally started to rebuild. They approached from the air, on one of the Shinra helicopters, and Cloud didn't wait before jumping out the helicopter and drawing the Ultima Weapon. As if monster called to monster, the giant creature turned its head toward him, started to roar. Cloud only smirked, let his wings unfurl and dove straight into it.

***

The gore took an hour to wash off. Cloud begrudgingly accepted Reno's offer to come out to the complex, where the showers were guaranteed to get the blood off, and then stood under the spray of the showers in the SOLDIER quarters, longer than was strictly necessary, just feeling the warmth on his skin. It had taken some time to soak through his hair completely, to wash it out, but he had managed, and when he finally felt clean he stepped out... and stopped when he saw Clemson standing there holding a towel.

"Surprised to see you back here, sir," Clemson said, and Cloud took the towel.

"Don't call me sir, I'm not really part of your organization."

"Maybe not, but... I just wanted to let you know, some of the others say hi... and would really like it if you'd get in touch with them next time you're in the city."

Cloud paused in the middle of drying off, looked at Clemson with a small frown, his head tilted slightly. Clemson just managed a small smile, and thanked him, and left.

***

He stepped outside of the SOLDIER quarters and Reno was waiting for him.

"Is everyone trying to ambush me now?" he asked, and Reno shrugged.

"Depends on your definition of ambush. If that includes questions or requests, then sure--I'm ambushin' ya." He poked Cloud in the shoulder. "C'mon with me to the quarters."

"I thought they were empty now," Cloud said, referring to Fenrir's old chambers, and Reno nodded.

"Yeah, Fenrir's is currently getting reconstructed into a proper infirmary for the remaining SOLDIERs. But that ain't what I'm talking about."

"...like hell, Reno."

"I wouldn't know until I tried," Reno said. "But for what it's worth, I think it'd be a good idea. I mean, you and your SOLDIER buddies might not age at the same rate, but the rest of us ain't getting any younger, Strife."

"Wouldn't Tseng kill me, anyway?"

"Ain't any of us getting any younger, Strife," Reno said again, walking away. Cloud finally took a deep breath, and followed.

***

He wasn't certain how he felt, seeing that place again. It hadn't changed much--Cloud was pretty certain some of the art got replaced by something different, but he didn't notice any major changes. A quick glance revealed the dining room was absolutely the same, and unoccupied. He just frowned at Reno, who gestured for him to follow.

Cloud did follow, quietly, surprised that his body wasn't reacting to the familiar place as he thought it might, but then they stepped into a room he hadn't seen before, any of the other times--a study, with walls lined with books, the air filled with the smell of their paper and bindings and old leather, and armchairs, and a small secretary desk. Rufus was standing beside one of the bookcases, cane within reach.

"You're late, Reno," Rufus started, but whatever else he was going to say died off when Reno stepped aside and let Cloud in.

"He insisted," Cloud said, with a shrug, and Rufus snapped the book shut and returned it to its place on the shelf, before turning around and resting his back against the shelves and his hands on the cane.

"...did he."

"I did, boss," Reno said, unrepentant.

"I'm beginning to wonder why _haven't_ I shot you yet?" Rufus said, then looked to Cloud. "I apologize for any inconvenience he has caused."

"No, it's fine. I should say thank you, anyway. Nibelheim's looking pretty good, these days."

"I'd... heard something like that," Rufus said. "And... you're welcome. Though since it was to pay you back, I don't think you owe me anything."

"Maybe not, but manners are manners. Besides, it did help." Cloud crossed his arms. "I mean, I look at you and I don't want to punch you in the face anymore."

The corners of Rufus's mouth quirked upward. "That is a relief, though I think I should be more cautious of your sword. I should thank you as well for coming all the way out to help us deal with that creature." He paused, then said, "Stay for tea? I promise, I won't even try to drug you insensate this time."

"Hot chocolate?" Cloud said, hopefully, and Rufus nodded.

"Hot chocolate, then. Reno, stop looking so pleased with yourself."

It was only when they turned to leave that Cloud noticed the single peg in the wall beside the door, upon which hung a circle of black leather with a silver, diamond tag. He stopped and stared at it, and then nodded and walked past it, through the door. A reminder... but nothing more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note July 2014: So basically, I had an idea back in December, and then let it wait after writing the very first bit. I sent it off to Rissi as a thing for her to enjoy, and she did, but then I spent a long time just wondering if I should even do the story, since it started out and quite obviously was turning into a PWP... except then a plot bunny appeared. So I actually wrote out this fic over the course of 13 days in email strings, which explains why some of the sections might seem a little oddly cut.
> 
> And it was interesting to watch as a number of ideas from older fics started popping up. I had an idea of why Rufus was so obsessed with Cloud, but then Sephiroth mentioned Plan Dea and it fell right into place. I also knew Teiral was coming a long time before actually revealing it, because... it was what made sense. I nearly included a warning about him, but that would have given him away.
> 
> That said, writing Teiral requires going into a seriously disgusting area of headspace, and I'm glad to be out of it.
> 
> Anyway, hope everyone enjoyed it and its weirdness.
> 
> I have some post-story snippets that I've written that kinda add to this, but I'm debating whether to post them. If so I'll make sure they're linked to this work.


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